Brick by Brick
by Cunnawabum
Summary: Being the new girl again, caring for her sick grandfather, and threatening to call the cops on the famous Host Club wasn't how Mami saw her senior year going. What other curve balls will this year bring after Tamaki takes a special interest in her? Mori/OC, Tamaki/Haruhi.
1. Chapter 1

_-Mami's inner thoughts-_

**Chapter 1**

As soon as the last bell of the day rang, the room around me exploded with noise. The girls around me stood up quickly and started tittering away about who they were going to see at the Host club today._ Host club. That's all I've heard anyone talk about since school started a week ago. _I packed my schoolbooks away in my bag, leaving out an old leather-bound book and a small notebook. I quickly looked toward the board to check the homework making a mental note on what chapter to read tonight. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw some of my classmates glance over at me before laughing amongst themselves. I looked down at my desk, trying not to let it bother me. I was the new girl after all; they had all been going to school together for at least two years if not more.

Quickly making my way outside, I headed toward the large pond that Ouran had on its campus. I found it on second day after trying to get the feel of the large campus; I hadn't seen anyone there since so it became my favorite quite spot. _Of course finding the nest was a huge plus, I can't wait to tell Ojii-san_. I smiled to myself before stopping dead in my tracks as I turned the final corner.

There were seven boys wandering around carrying lanterns and streamers. It looked as though they were throwing a party of some sort. Several blankets were already placed on the ground and a couple of carts were filled with teacups and sweets. A tall blonde boy was placing a ladder near one of the trees next to the pond. Under different circumstances, I would have avoided them at all costs. But my heart started to race and I finally got my limbs to listen to my screaming brain.

"Stop! What are you doing?" I yelled, gathering up the some of the layers of the uniform with my free hand so I could sprint over to him. A look of confusion flashed across his face but was gone just as quick. Suddenly he was inches away from my face, his violet eye twinkling.

"My dear princess, you don't need to worry. I was perfectly safe." He grabbed my hand and brought it close to his mouth. "But I appreciate your concern." I grabbed my hand back and took a couple steps away from him. I could feel how warm my ears were.

"I wasn't worried about you. I'm worried about them!" I jab my finger in the air, glaring, my heart was still pounding in my ears. He followed it a finally saw the fairly large nest that was resting in the same tree he had just placed the ladder next to. It was currently empty but I could see the father keeping a close eye in a nearby tree out of the corner of my eye and I could hear the faint chirping of the chicks.

"A nest?" He muttered and his eyes widened a bit, a look of childlike wonder flashed across his face.

"What seems to be the problem here?" I glanced over to where the new voice came from. He was a few inches taller than me so I had to glance up in order to look him in his dark gray eyes that were shielded by a pair of glasses. He pushed them further up his nose, catching the sunlight, causing an almost sinister glare. Maybe I only thought it was sinister due to the forced smile on his face. He held a small black notebook in one hand. The look on his face may have made a smarter person balk in fear but unfortunately for him, I wasn't about to back down.

"You can't set up whatever you're doing here." I placed myself between the two boys and the tree, narrowing my eyes at them. My grip on my books tightened as well. _I dare you to try a move me. _

"Look Kyoya! A nest!" The blonde bounced up and down like a small child, pointing. The black haired ignored him and continued to look at me.

"This is a very special celebration for the end of the first week of school. I've already gotten permission from the school and there will be a lot of disappointed customers as well if the Host Club doesn't have this special celebration." His eyes flashed with annoyance but he kept the fake smile on his face. I stood up taller, unconsciously trying to make myself seem bigger and more intimidating. I was not going to let them stay here no matter once.

"That is a nest of Japanese Crested Ibis. They are an endangered species just recently introduced back into the wild. If you were to disturb or touch that nest, the parents would abandon it." I pull my cell phone out of my bag, "If you don't leave I will report you to the authorities. I think the authorities trump the chairman." I stared at him. _You're move. _

The rest of the boys had gathered around during the brief exchange. A tall black haired boy, who had a much smaller dark blonde on his shoulders, look up toward the nest and then to the neighboring tree where both parents were watching. His lips ticked upward into a small smile.

A small brown haired boy had two orange haired twins hanging off his shoulders looking bored while he had a look of indifference. The fake grin disappeared and his glasses flashed white as the sun reflected off them.

"There is a smaller pond a little bit from here. You can set up," I glance around at the decorations again and waved my hand around, "this, there." He glanced quickly at my phone then looked me directly in the eyes before jotting something down in a black notebook he held. He was silent for a minute before turning to look at the other boys.

"Well? Move." I couldn't see his face but I assumed it wasn't very happy by the way they jumped and started to rush around. The excitable blonde mumbled something that sounded like 'Mommy is scary' before hustling to move the ladder. Kyoya glanced back at me once more before walking off in the direction I pointed toward the other pond. All of the boys, except the small brown haired one and the tall dark haired boy, glanced at me several times as I stood guard beneath the tree while they packed up their party. I refused to move an inch until they were gone.

I let out a shaky breath. _I can't believe I just did that. _I tried to relax, as my heart was still pounding in my ears, asI made my way to the spot under a tree several meters away from the nest and opened my notebook. Turning to an empty page, I glanced at the leather-bound book lying to the side. My stomach felt like it was twisted and it felt like I had a lump stuck in my throat. I shut my eyes and clenched my jaw for several seconds, focusing on my breathing before opening them again, the feeling almost subsiding. I carefully opened the book and turned to the handwritten page that had information about the crested ibis along with a detailed drawing of one. I lightly touch the beautiful drawing.

The sound of flapping broke my concentration and I glanced up. Pink tinted plumage filled the sky as the parents returned to the nest. Tiny grey heads peaked above the edge of the nest, begging for food. I felt the corner of my lips twitch up slightly, as a sense of relief washed over me. I brought out a pencil and began writing some observations and drew a quick sketch of the beautiful birds in front of me in my own notebook.

After about an hour of studying the birds, I packed my stuff away. I slowly made my way back to the front of the school, taking care to not walk into the middle of whatever the boys were still doing, I could hear them faintly in the distance. The car was already waiting when I got to the entrance and the driver was standing ridged by the back door. He didn't even look at me as he opened the door for me and then shut it. I sunk into the seat as the driver returned to the wheel. He didn't say a word, nor did I. It was useless, he wouldn't talk to me but I kept the divider down just in case. _I can't believe I yelled at complete strangers today and threatened to call the cops on them. _I groaned and ran a hand down my face. The driver glanced at the rear view mirror briefly before focusing on the road again. _A week of trying not to call attention to myself and I make enemies with the notorious Host Club, you're off to a great start at your new school, Mami. _I took a strand of black curly hair in my hand and twirled it around my finger, staring out the window, frowning at my reflection._ There goes any possibility you had at making friends. _

* * *

**There you have it. The beginning of the updated version of my story Brick by Brick. I am editing by myself and I went to school for Geology not English so please be gentle with any grammar mistakes. I don't own anything anything but the characters of my own making. Please review! **


	2. Chapter 2

_Who ever thought Mondays were a good idea? _

I dragged my feet as I gathered my books. Mondays always felt so slow to me. It felt like I had already gone through whole day when it was just barely lunchtime. I sighed and ran a hand through my dark curls ruffling them slightly. _Which garden should I eat lunch in today? _I pondered, making my way out into the hallway. I tried to avoid the cafeteria like the plague. Avoiding conflict was getting harder as snide remarks had spread from just my classroom to other classes as well. When the schools motto is "Lineage counts first; wealth a close second" its easy to see why I would cause some students to dislike me. My family didn't have the lineage history that most in my class did but we did have enough wealth to just barely make it into 'B' class.

I leaned back against the tree, my yellow dress fanning out around me as I sat on the ground. The rose garden was quiet and serene. Some bird chirped happily in the nearby trees adding to the nice atmosphere. I held open my ancient history textbook with one hand and armed myself with chopsticks in the other, my bento resting carefully on my lap. The teacher had hinted on Friday that there would be a pop quiz today and I wanted to brush up on the lesson. I absent-mindedly brought a mouthful of rice to my lips, my eyes never leaving the pages.

"Senpai, what are we doing out here?" My eyes darted toward the voice, my flight instincts starting to kick into full gear. The small brown haired boy from Friday looked very annoyed as he turned the corner. His eyes were a warm dark brown with long lashes, very feminine features and smooth skin. Before I could continue my observations of him any further, the rest of the group rounded the corner. The tall blonde's eyes lit up when he saw me.

"To have lunch with this lovely princess of course!" He rushed over and grabbed my hand holding my chopsticks. His violet eyes bore into mine as if searching for something.

"Please don't call me princess." I mumbled, slowly taking my hand back. I could feel my ears getting warm from the attention. _I need to get out of here, quick. _

"Oi! You're the one that stood up to Kyoya-senpai." I couldn't help but let out a little yell. Somehow the orange haired twins had snuck up on me and were on either side of me. Their arms snaked around my shoulders, my ears felt like they were on fire. I looked between them; their amber eyes had the same look of mischief. I nearly missed Kyoya give a quite 'huff. I ducked under the arms of the orange haired twins and started to gather my things.

"Sorry, I'll just move." I mumbled.

"Hikaru, Kaoru, leave her alone." The brown haired boy scolded them and handed me my ancient history books with an apologetic smile. I hesitated before returning it with a small one of my own.

"Kusumoto Mami, Class 3B, new transfer student, her family owns 80% of animal hospitals in Asia, several veterinary schools, and various animal rehabilitation centers." Kyoya pushed his glasses up causing the menacing glare to happen again. I paused, shooting him a glance. My heart began to race as I came to the realization of he knew all about me and I just barely knew his first name. I shut my eyes trying to organize the racing thoughts in my head.

"Are you going to come to the Host club, Mi-chan?" A voice asked as I felt a sudden weight on my shoulders. My body had acted on it's own. I opened my eyes at sudden gasp. The dark blonde boy was now on the ground looking up at me with his brown eyes with a mixture of hurt and confusion. The rest of them stared at me shocked. My voice caught in my throat, no words would come out. I stumbled as I backed up, trying to get away from their gaze, gaining my footing. I did what I did best, I ran.

I spent the rest of the day on edge, looking for any sign of boys. I couldn't bear to face any of them now. News of the incident hadn't spread or else I'm sure the girls wouldn't hesitate to take things into their own hands. I could almost cry with relief when the last bell rang. _Almost home free. Please be here. _ I bolted out the door, toward entrance of the school. My eyes darted around until I spotted my driver waiting patiently by the door. _Thank god! _

Settling into the seat, I finally caught my breath. _What am I going to do? Why did I have to react like that? I'm a terrible person. _I brought my legs up to my chest and buried my face into the plush fabric of my uniform. I stayed like that until the car stopped. Slowly dropping my legs to the floor, I crawled out the back. I mumbled a thank you to the driver and made my way to the already opened front door. I glanced at the butler holding the door open.

"Are my parents back?" I asked even though deep down I already knew the answer.

"No Kusumoto-sama." He bowed his head and didn't offer anything else as he closed the door behind me. Sighing, I made my way down the hall to my safe place. As soon as I opened the door to my bedroom, I was almost knocked over by a streak of black and a streak of tan. I couldn't help but giggle as the two dogs tried to jump over each other to get my attention. Oso, the three-legged black haired shepherd, started to lick my hands while Besos, the tan Staffordshire terrier, was wiggling her tail so hard she could barely stand up straight. I pushed past them to set my bag on my desk before sitting on the ground letting them jump on top of me. I instantly felt better; the anxiety from the day just rolled off my shoulders and nothing seemed to matter. Eventually they settled down and we just lay together on the floor while I stroked Besos's velvet like ears as she rested her blocky head on my lap.

Sadly, the feeling of relief didn't last long as my mind began to wander and that sinking feeling came back. My chest felt tight, it felt as though my stomach was doing flips and my mind was racing and I couldn't get it to slow down.

I had pushed a stranger to the ground for no good reason and I didn't apologize. The look in his eyes and those of his friends were burned into the back of mine. I saw them every time I closed my eyes. What am I going to do now? I don't even know his name. He and his friends probably hate me anyways. I wouldn't want to see me if I were him either. My heart began to race again. I looked to the pictures hanging on my wall and felt and sense of comfort surround me.

My eyes moved over to the older picture on the right. A young Japanese man (my Ojiisan), with black hair that looked like it hadn't seen a comb in ages was hugging a beautiful Mexican woman (my Abuelita), her long dark hair fell in delicate curls around her face. They both had smiles on their faces as they stood in front of a sign that said Guadalajara Animal Rehabilitation Center.

Next to it was the same couple but much older. Wrinkles were apparent on both of their faces. Ojiisan's hair was cut short and streaks of grey were poking through the black. Abuelita's now silver hair fell around her face in light curls. They were holding me between them; I couldn't have been older than two in the picture. Even as a little girl I looked like my Abuelita, though I had my Ojiisan's eyes.

My favorite photo was in the center though. It was taken almost a year ago. My Ojiisan was standing next to me, arm wrapped around my shoulders. His hair was now mostly white with streaks of jet black making an appearance. His caramel eyes were crinkled as a huge smile crossed his face. He looked so proud of me. I stood next to him with the same goofy smile on my face. I held a huge pair of scissors in my hands getting ready to cut the red ribbon next to me. It was the first shelter I had opened by myself. He took me out for all-you-can-eat ice cream after to celebrate. My heart swelled looking at it, the sense of comfort slowly being replaced by sadness. Tears started to sting my eyes, threatening to fall. _No. I'm not going to cry. _

A knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts. I slowly got up off the floor and opened the door. A maid silently handed me a covered tray and bowed before leaving me along again. I mumbled a thank you to her back. I set the tray next to my bag on my desk. My stomach was still doing flips, my appetite was non-existent. I was afraid I would see the food again if I tried to force myself to eat it. I sat on the corner of my bed, patted the mattress inviting the two dogs up on the king sized bed with me. Pulling my phone out, I pulled up the school website and found the host clubs page fairly quickly. There was a place to request an appointment in advance and a pre-order sale on this year's calendar along with some other host club themed merchandise.

Eventually I found the tab with the brief profiles of each host. I scanned them thoroughly, trying to commit everything to memory. I could see why the girls liked them so much; they were all quite handsome in different ways. I was a little surprised to find out the blonde I had thrown was the same age as me. He looked and acted so young in the brief time I had been with him. His profile stated that his favorite food was cake. _That explains why he smelled like Ojii-san. _I clutched the locket around my neck as a lifeline, my chest tightening again. I stood up suddenly, dropping my phone on the bed sheet and startling the two dogs that had just fallen asleep. I knew what I had to do.

I thanked the girls as I gathered a few fresh eggs from their coop, placing them safely in the basket. They clucked around my feet, seemingly thanking me for the seed I had thrown on the ground for them. I scratched one of the chickens under their chin before closing the enclosure behind me. I grabbed a bucket on my way to the barn and called out for Haru. I couldn't help but smile as the happy heifer trotted over to me right away. I nuzzled my face into her neck as she rested her head on my shoulder. After a minute, I grabbed the stool against the wall, setting it down next to her; I rubbed her side with one hand while placing the bucket under her udders with the other. I talked to Haru in a soothing voice as I keep a steady rhythm pulling at her udders. Once I got enough fresh milk, I thanked her one last time, offering a fresh apple in return for her time.

I set the basket of eggs and bucket of milk down on the counter next to all the other supplies I had pulled out before. I stared at them. It had been months since I had baked anything for anyone but Ojiisan. I let out a shaky breath and tied the apron I grabbed off the hook on the wall around me.

I using the back of my hand I wiped the sweat off my brow as I finished shaking the strainer filled with powdered sugar over the chocolate cake. I couldn't help but smile at the two perfect looking cakes in front of me. I carefully packaged them both in separate boxes. Setting one aside for my peace offering tomorrow, I grabbed the other one and asked the butler to call the car for me. Before I knew it I was at Yushima Estates. It was the best-assisted living home money could buy but apparently not all the money in world could mask the telltale smell of a hospital. I lightly knocked on my grandfather's door before letting myself in. He was sitting at the small table in the corner of the room near the kitchenette.

"Pollita." His caramel colored eyes were bright as his eyes immediately focused on the box in my hands. "Is that what I think it is?" A smile was growing on his face as I set the box closer to him. Ojii-san slowly opened that box before clasping his hands in front of him. "My favorite. Granddaughter, you spoil me."

"Nothing but the best for you, Ojiisan." I gave him a peck on his wrinkly cheek. He had changed so much since that last picture was taken. His hair was pure white now, the wrinkles on his face had deepened and he looked so frail. But his smile made me feel like everything was going to be okay.

"So tell me, have you made any friends?" I nearly dropped the plates but recovered quickly. The warm brown eyes full of confusion and hurt flashed before my eyes. I shook my head and forced a smile on my face before turning back to Ojiisan.

"I've met a couple people." He looked at me knowingly.

"You can't fool to me, Pollita. What's wrong?" With a sigh, I sat the plates and silverware on the table before taking a seat myself. I laid my head on the table in defeat while he served us both a generous slice of cake. Ojiisan knew me better than I knew myself. Not only had he raised me and taught me everything I know about animals but he was also my best friend.

"I messed up Ojiisan. I freaked out and pushed someone. I'm sure he and all his friends hate me." He lightly tapped my head. It was his way of scolding me for over reacting; it helped ground me back to reality.

"You worry too much. He'll forgive you once he has a bite of this cake." I watched his hands grip his fork with some difficulty but he still smiled after taking a bite. He finished his slice of cake quickly but he stopped me before I could serve him another slice. "We have to save some for your grandmother, she'll be back any minute. I know she'll love a slice." My heart fell to my stomach as I gently patted his hand.

"Of course, Ojiisan. I'll put it away for now." I realized by now that it hurt him less if I didn't try to force him to remember. The only plus side was it was easier to lie to him when he was in one of his 'episodes' as the nurses called it. Abuelita passed away when I was four. She wasn't coming back. I stand up and place a kiss on his cheek. "I have to go now Ojiisan, it's a school night."

"You're going to make friends soon, Pollita." He pulled me into a hug. I buried my head into his chest, breathing in the comforting sweet smell. Somehow he always smells of baked goods. I pulled back and make my way to the door. "I'll make sure to tell your Abuelita you stopped by." I nodded my head without turning around. I didn't trust myself not to break down if I looked at him again. My heart had taken all the beating it could today.

* * *

**Author's note:**

**I hope you are enjoying the story so far! A huge thank your for those who have followed the story and have taken the time to review.  
**

** I haven't decided on a pairing for Mami yet but it'll be a while before I get to any romance. I want to focus on building her friendships within the Host Club first before jumping into any romantic relationships. I'm taking some liberties with Japanese school culture, for the sake of the story the school week will only go from Monday-Friday. I'm going to keep the Japanese and Spanish to a minimum, while my character is fluent in both, I am not but I'm going to try my hardest to be correct in the terms I do use. **

**Also this story will deal with Anxiety, Depression, Alzheimer's, Bullying, and Panic Attacks. If you want warnings before each chapter let me know.  
**

**The symptoms of Alzheimer's can vary, I am personally using my own experience of both of my grandparents who were effected by the disease. **

**Pollita- 'Little chicken' a term of affection in Mexican culture. **

**Abuelita- Grandma**

**Ojiisan- Grandpa**

**My goal is to update once a week most likely on Sundays **


	3. Chapter 3

I stood frozen outside the classroom, the carefully wrapped cake clutched in my hands. I had managed to find my way to the Class 3A homeroom was but I hadn't worked up enough courage to make my way into the room. I glared at the closed door, willing it to open by itself so I wouldn't have to make the final push by myself. My stomach was still doing the same flips as last night. I had only managed to eat a few bites of breakfast this morning before feeling like I was going to be sick.

"Mi-Chan?" I couldn't help but jump at the voice that broke my concentration. I sheepishly turned around, recognizing the owner of the voice. Haninozuka Mitsukuni was hanging off the shoulders of the much taller Morinozuka Takashi. Haninozuka looked at me curiously, his brown eyes zeroing in on the box in my hands. Morinozuka showed no emotion on his face but the look in his dark grey eyes made me flinch back. His eyes were so expressive and I saw nothing but anger in them, not that I could blame him. I bowed deeply and stuck the box out in front of me.

"I'm deeply sorry Haninozuka-san for what I did yesterday. Please accept this as an apology." I stood up once I felt the box leave my hands but I continued to stare at the ground. I couldn't bring myself to look at them.

"Takashi! Look cake!" He sounded so excited; I guess I made the right call. Suddenly he was around my neck again hugging me tightly. "Thank you Mi-chan! You'll eat it with me, ne?" He looked up at me with his huge eyes that would make impossible for anyone to say no too.

"Um…"

"We'll eat it together at lunch! See you then, Mi-chan!" He grabbed Morinozuka hand that wasn't holding the open cake box and skipped into his classroom. I caught the taller boys eye before he too disappeared into the room. His eyes had softened and I could have sworn his lips were ticked upward into a smile. I stood there dumbly for a few more seconds alone in the now empty hallway. _What just happened? _

There was no way I could've escaped the lunch date that had been forced upon me. Somehow, despite the fact that our classes were no where close to each other, the mismatched pair was already waiting outside my classroom when the lunch bell rang, leaving me no way to slip away. I dragged my feet, clutching my precious leather bound book to my chest as a lifeline and I followed the bouncing senior to the cafeteria. Both boys seemed oblivious to the quiet mummers and the looks as we walked together down the hallway. _This is the opposite of keeping a low profile. _

"I can't wait to have your cake, Mi-chan. It looks really yummy, ne, Takashi?"

"Hm" He hummed in agreement. I didn't say anything; instead I focused on turning the silver ring on my left hand over and over again. The repetitive motion was soothing. As we entered the cafeteria, the small blonde skipped his way toward a table in the corner of the room. The rest of the host club was already was already sitting at the long table talking with each other. Once again my heart started racing, I wiped my palms on my skirts trying to get them as dry as my mouth felt. _I can't do this_. Haninozuka bounced easily into a free seat, while grabbing my hand, forcing me down in the plush chair next to him. I could feel that all eyes were on me as I tried to burn a hole into the beautiful wood table. _I don't want to be here. _

"Look everyone! Mi-chan brought me a cake!" His voice was so sweet and seemed to instantly break through the heavy tension that hung in the air.

"It looks so boring." One of the Hitachiin twin drawled out, I could feel my ears getting hot. "Ow!" I glanced up to see Fujioka Haruhi lowing his hand as one of the twins rubbed the back of their head as the other one laughed.

"Don't be rude, Hikaru." Fujioka caught my eye and offered another kind smile. "It looks really good, Kusumoto-senpai."

"Thank you." I mumbled fidgeting with a stray thread on my uniform. A slice of the cake was placed in front of my line of vision, saving the table from my gaze. I finally lifted my head up so I could fully see everyone at the table. Haninozuka had offered the entire host club a slice, keeping almost half of the cake for himself. I pushed my slice around a bit with my fork. I couldn't bring myself to eat the sweet, my stomach still hadn't settled down. The small senior was the first one to take a bite and his eyes started to sparkle.

"Mi-chan! This is so good!" I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding. The rest of the hosts took a bite and none of them spit it out. _Well, that's a good sign, maybe Ojiisan was right._

"What kind of cake is this, Kusumoto-senpai? I don't think I've had chocolate with cinnamon before." Fujioka placed a finger on his lips and looked up in thought. His face was round and softer than those around the table; their eyes were large and doe-like. I was fairly certain after being able to study the younger student closer that Fujioka was biologically a girl though he chose to present himself as a male.

"Mexican Chocolate cake. It's my great grandma's recipe." I forced out despite feeling like there was a lump in my throat. I could feel the harsh gazes of some of the girls on my back.

"Mi-chan, did you make this yourself?" Haninozuka tilted his head to the side, some crumbs on his cheek was all that was left of his cake. I nodded my head slowly and was instantly wrapped up in someone's arms being swung side to side.

"How beautiful, Mami-senpai! To give the gift of homemade baked goods." Suoh Tamaki held my head close to his chest, tears streaming down his cheeks. He let go and got close to Fujioka. "Daddy wants homemade baked goods too!"

"No." He said bluntly, taking another bite of his slice. This sent Suoh into the corner, with the twins poking fun at him. Suoh tried to get Ootori to save him from the twins but he ignored him and continued to tap away on his laptop. I was slightly surprised to see his plate empty. _He ate my cake? He didn't look like the type to like sweets. _

"Thank you, Mi-chan. It was so good~" I couldn't help but offer a small smile in return. His smile was contagious.

"I'm glad you like it, Haninozuka-san." He pouted.

"Call me Honey, Mi-chan. Everyone does!"

"Honey-san" I saw slowly, he grinned again, nodding.

"Are you going to come to the host club today, Mi-chan?" The way he looked at me told me he knows I couldn't say no to his puppy dog eyes. _He's using his looks to his advantage. He's not as innocent as he looks apparently._ _What have I gotten myself into? _

I felt guilty sneaking away after the last bell but I really didn't want to be around people again. The glares I got after coming back from lunch didn't help my stomach to settle settled down and my body just felt so heavy. I was exhausted. _I'm sure he won't even notice I wasn't there. _I tried to convince myself based solely on the amount of girls in my class alone that rushed to the club. _I should get out of here; I've pressed my luck too much already. _I stopped in my tracks.

A large truck was parked alongside the cars taking students home. 'Kusumoto Wildlife Rehabilitation' was written in large letters on the side. _What are they doing here?_ I watched at four men carefully lifted a large cage out of the back of the truck. My heart sank as I raced over toward them.

"What's going on here?" I yelled at the man standing near the truck holding a clipboard. I could see him roll his eyes before turning to me. His eyes widened and he bowed deeply.

"Kusumoto-sama. Someone ordered some animals for this afternoon." He looked at me sheepishly when he looked at my less than amused face. In the large cage that had just been taken out of the truck was a two-year-old tiger, panting and pacing.

"Why is Tuko here? And who is in charge of caring for these animals?" He flinched back.

"They ordered a tiger, Kusumoto-sama and I didn't see anything wrong. Tuko is the gentlest large cat we have." If I could set things on fire with my mind, this man would be burnt to a crisp. I was no longer exhausted. I got my second wind and I was being fueled by pure rage.

"He's still a dangerous wild animal. He is not going into that school. Send him back to the center now." I growled out. He hastily motioned for the four men to put Tuko back on the truck. I stopped them briefly as the walked by. I placed my hand palm out close enough to the cage so that when Tuko pressed his head against the steal mesh that was in-between the bars, I could scratch behind his ear. I cooed to him softly before nodding, having the men finish taking him again. I turned to face the leader again. "Now, who else is already in there and who is the caretaker for them?" He looked even more nervous and tried to hide behind his clipboard. Today was not his day.

I fiddled with the locket around my neck as I stomped my way to the third music room. I was furious at Ootori for saying I had volunteered to be caretaker for the afternoon. _On the plus side, my stomach was no longer upset. _Unfortunately, no other caretaker was available on such short notice combined with the facts that not only were there already animals in the room but the fee was paid in full.

Ripping the doors open, I froze. I blinked a couple times to make sure I wasn't seeing things. The room was decorated to look like a tropical jungle and the hosts were all standing around shirtless, except for Fujioka who was still wearing his uniform. I snapped out of my daze when crab-eating macaque made himself comfortable on my shoulder, his long tail wrapping around my neck. I scratched under his chin.

"Mi-Chan~! You came~!" Honey cheered, he had lei around his neck. He sounded genuinely excited that I came. Morinozuka's outfit was the only one that had a sash that went across his chest. I didn't mean to ignore him but I only had one thing on my mind right now.

"What do you think you're doing? And why are all the animals roaming free?" I snarled as I stomped over to the table where he was sitting, typing away on his laptop again. He was decked out in a chunky gold necklace. Ootori pushed his glasses up and smirked at me. I'm sure I would have looked more menacing if it weren't for the cute primate checking my hair for bugs.

"We're having a Bali themed today in the Host club and we like to make our theme days as immersive as possible for our customers. As for volunteering you for animal caretaker, I looked it up; you've clocked in the most hours caring for these animals making you the most qualified for the job. It was just a plus that we didn't have to pay extra for your travel fee."

I couldn't argue with that logic, as annoyed as I was. I was the most qualified person to be the caretaker. I've spent a large portion of my free time at all of the rehabilitation centers my family owned across the world since I was a baby. Ojiisan taught me how to take care of and above of all, respect all of the animals in our center. It was easy to forget sometimes that these aren't fully tame animals; they're still wild at heart. Before I could properly respond, the doors opened and a bunch of girls rushed in, amazed at the theme of the day. They all cooed and 'aww'ed at the animals that rushed around the room.

One girl rushed over to me and asked if she could pet the macaque. I felt my anger ebb away as I slipped into trainer mood. I felt most at ease when talking to someone about animals, I took a lot of pride being an advocate for those that didn't have a voice. I showed her where she could touch him and answered any questions she had about the young primate that was now swinging happily from my arm. She looked amazed on amazed as I told her about how they would use stone tools to open nuts, oysters and even sea snails. The girl thanked me before making her way over to Fujioka's table.

My head shot over to the twin's table when one of the girls screamed and jumped on their chair. I quickly place the macaque in his proper cage before rushing over to gather the bronzeback snake in my arms safely. She made herself comfortable wrapping herself around my upper body, enjoying my body heat.

"Shush, you're okay" I whisper to the cute little snake softly walking away from the scared girls. _I'm going to kill Ootori for being so careless. _Fujioka came up to me as I was placing the snake safely back in her cage. He was calmly holding a Sunda pangolin in his arms.

"Senpai, would you mind talking to the girls? They seem to really interested in him?" Fujioka nodded toward the reptile. I glanced at the remaining empty cages. It looked like the last three were birds. The windows and doors were securely closed. I sighed and carefully grabbed the pangolin and followed the host back to the table. I could feel my heart start to beat faster as all eyes turned to me. The girl that had asked me questions about the macaque offered me a kind smile. _This is just like at the center. Just talk about what you know. _

"This is Kiki, we estimate she's about four years old." I felt so relaxed and in my element talking to the girls about the scaly mammal. "Sadly, her species is critically endangered. They're often poached for their skin and their beautiful scales for clothing, traditional medicine, and even some are eaten." Kiki slowly unrolled her self after a few minutes of me stroking her hard scales.

I excused myself as a brown hair girl announced it was her turn to talk with Fujioka. I placed Kiki in her cage and glanced around quickly for the three birds. I whistled a three note tune while holding my arm straight out. From the corner of the room, two coconut Lorikeets glided down from a branch and landed on my arm. The multicolored birds made themselves comfortable on my arm as few girls clapped in delight at the brief show. _All right last one. _

I found the last bird perched on Morinozuka's shoulder. The large funny looking bird ignored me as I walked closer, even going as far as to hop over to his far shoulder. A small smile was one Morinozuka's face, his eyes shining with delight, he clearly didn't mind being used as a perch.

"Isca, come here." I placed my hands on my hips, tapping my foot. The rhinoceros hornbill ruffled his feathers and seemed to shake his head. "I'll give you a papaya if you come." The bird clicked happily and hoped on to my outstretched hand. After safely putting him back in his cage, I turned to face the host club who was watching me curiously. "I'm going to have the workers come get them." I mumbled as I made my way to the door, trying my hardest not to make eye contact with anyone. _And I thought I was tired before. _

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**A/N: I hope you continue to enjoy the story! I only own Mami and her family.  
**

**Mami is a very good at observing so she easily figured out that Haruhi is a girl but because Haruhi refers to herself using male pronouns, she's going to continue to use them for Haruhi as well (until they have that conversation). I know it's an overused trope of the OC figuring it out fast but it didn't make sense given the observational skills Mami has. She may not be the most social of people but she's not an idiot. **

**All the animals do live in Bali and this is actually the part where I got the idea for this story.**

**I'm going to be following the manga mostly but I'm going to change some minor things, like the fact that it starts in the spring suddenly it's christmas then spring again. I'm going to try and make the timeline make a bit more sense season wise. **

**Also I'm leaning toward making the pairing Mori/Mami but I could also see the story taking an interesting turn toward Kyoya/Mami. What do you guys think?**


	4. Chapter 4

I own nothing but my own characters. Ouran High School Host Club belongs to Bisco Hatori.

_Mami's inner thoughts_

**Multiple people saying the same thing**

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"You'll all be working with partners."

With just those six words, any anxiety that had left me over night had returned tenfold. The classroom bustled around me, people were shouting over each other making sure they got the partner they wanted. Desks were moved together, chairs moved closer.

"Kusumoto-chan, did you not hear me?" Hayashi-senpai, the stern English teacher, asked. My face felt like it was on fire as those around me laughed behind their hands. I mumbled an apology before looking around the room, secretly hoping that I had wasted enough time finding a partner and there would be no one left to pair up with. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't so lucky. There was just one person left. He sat in the back corner of the classroom, as far away from the windows as you could get. A large black cloak covered his entire body, the hood masking his face. The only color that was around him was a small yellow puppet shaped like a cat that rested on hid hand.

_Well, at least I'm not the only weirdo in class. _I got up and moved a free desk closer to him. He turned to look at me, moving the puppet at the same time. Dark eyes and slanted cat eyes stared as a grin appeared on his face.

"Nekozawa Umehito and this is Beelzenef." Both he and the puppet bowed their heads in greeting. I returned the bow awkwardly, not really sure how to properly respond to a greeting from a hand puppet.

"H-hi, I'm Kusumoto Mami."

"Alright class, I hope you picked your partners wisely, you'll be working together for the rest of the year on various projects. We'll be working heavily on public speaking." My heart dropped. Not only would I have to work with another person but also I would have to speak to the whole class in English. I hated talking to large groups of people unless I had an animal to carry the conversation. Without that safety blanket, I was a stumbling mess.

"However, today you will just be going over each other's introduction essays I asked you to write last week."

Nekozawa and I sat in an awkward silence as the rest of our classmates chatted around us, talking about the various things they had chosen to write about. He fiddled with the puppet on his hand as I silently gave him my essay. The assignment was simple, we just had to write about one of our childhood memories, I had chosen to write about the weeklong camping trip Ojiisan and I went on in the Amazon rainforest.

Nekozawa's essay was about casting his first curse and honestly, it was fascinating. Not only was it a beautifully written piece, he could have been writing about the history of calculus and I would still want to read it. But it also made me nostalgic for my family in Mexico. My great aunt was the village's shaman. She would use similar rituals in healing practices, perform cleansing rituals and even told fortunes. His essay made me wish I had paid more attention to her stories growing up.

"Nekozawa-san, you're an amazing writer." I said, placing the papers down on the desk. Compared to his essay, mine must of have looked like a fifth grader wrote it. He grinned again, his dark eyes peaking out from under his hood.

"Are you interested in black magic Kusumoto-san? Would you like to join the black magic club? Every new member gets a free Beelzenef doll." He was obviously very excited that someone was expressing interest in something he clearly loved. Beelzenef fidgeted faster on his hand. I recognized the movements because I was doing the same thing with my locket.

"I might visit sometime, Nekozawa-san." I felt like we started an odd kind of kinship in that moment.

I glanced up briefly before carefully putting the finishing touch on my sketch. The Ibis chicks had grown so much in just a week. The cherry blossoms softly shook in the breeze just adding to the relaxing environment. I tilted my head back, closing my eyes, enjoying the serene quiet of the pond.

"Oh, I'm sorry Kusumoto-senpai. I didn't know anyone would be here." Opening my eyes, I glanced to the side. Fujioka was standing there alone, bento in one hand and his bag in the other. "I was just looking to for somewhere quiet." I couldn't help but notice the look of annoyance that flickered across his face. I couldn't blame him. I felt like I was still trying to recover from the last time I was around the host club and that was nearly three days ago.

"It's okay Fujioka-kun, you can join me if you like." I offered him a smile and gestured to the open spot next to me. There was something about him that made me feel comfortable. He returned it and sat down.

"You can call me Haruhi, Kusumoto-senpai." His smile was so soft.

"Only if you call me Mami." He nodded and we settled into a comfortable silence. I continued to make notes and observations of the Ibis while Haruhi read from his English book. Looking up from my notebook, I saw him staring at it.

"Those drawings are very good, Mami-senpai." I could feel my ears getting warm, a little uncomfortable with the compliment. I thanked him and offered him my notebook so he could get a closer look. He flipped through the pages, turning each on carefully, reading every detail on the pages. The attention he took with each page, touched me. No one had ever taken such an earnest interest in my work before. "You really love animals. These truly are wonderful."

"Thank you." We sat in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company. I turned to the freshman. "Haruhi-kun, you're the scholarship student that everyone is talking about right?" He nodded before I continued. "How did you end up with the Host Club? No offense, but they don't really seem like the kind of people you'd choose to hang out with." Haruhi was quiet and down to earth. He struck me as the kind of person that would much rather be spending their time in a library than chatting with girls.

"I broke a vase after I accidently stumbled into the host club room after looking for a quiet place to study.I'm hosting with the club to pay off my debt." I must have looked worried because he hurriedly continued. "I don't mind. A debt is a debt. It's my fault the vase broke so it's only fair I pay it back myself. Besides, its kind of fun talking to the girls."

"Haruhi-kun, can I ask you kind of a personal question?" Haruhi shrugged. "Is that why you're pretending to be a boy?" I instantly regretted asking. "I'm sorry! That's too personal! It doesn't really matter, you can be a boy if you're a boy. You don't have –" She lightly smacked the back of my head, snapping me out of my panicked rambling.

"It's okay Mami-senpai. Biologically, I'm a girl. It doesn't matter how people see me though. Boy? Girl? It's not important. It's what's inside the person that's important." She smiled sweetly. I understood why the girls liked her. Her doe like eyes tugged at the maternal instincts, making people want to protect her. Plus it just made her down right adorable. "How did you figure it out?"

"Your features are more feminine than the typical male, your mannerisms and your voice also helped." I paused for a second before continuing. "So you're keeping your true gender a secret so you can host and pay back your debt?" She nodded. "Well, you make a pretty boy so I think you're secret is safe. I mean, it's safe with me."

"Thanks Mami-senpai." She said with a small laugh, probably at my rambling again, before we went back to enjoying each other's company in a comfortable silence. Today was actually turning out to be a good day. _Maybe not everyone at Ouran is bad. _

I stood outside the doors to the third music room. I had watched the herd of girls enter minutes before, I should have just gone in with them. It would have been less awkward than just staring at a closed door.

My heart and mind were at war. I wanted to help my new friend but also didn't want to cause any unnecessary attention to myself. After I was forced to help out the host club, the few people that still made comments said behind my back were now shoving them in my face. They didn't like how seemingly close I was with the legendary host club, despite me trying to tell them it was a mistake. Then again, what if it wasn't worth it? I was hopeful that I could finish my last year of school without having to switch half way through but there was still a possibility that my parents would be called away on business again and drag me along. _I don't want to leave Ojiisan alone though. Maybe- _

"So you think she knows how to use a door, Kaoru?" I jumped with a small yell, and glanced to my right, coming face to face with the auburn haired teen with a wicked grin on his face.

"Maybe she forgot, Hikaru." To my left was a similar face with the same grin. One of the boys wrapped an arm around my shoulders while the other wrapped his around my waist before I could respond.

"**Let us help you, senpai!" **They spoke in perfect unison while opening the doors. **"Look what we found." **All eyes were on me; my stomach started doing flips and face felt like it was on fire. There were too many people here and nothing to distract me from that fact. It didn't help how close the twins were either.

"Welcome back, Kusumoto-san." Ootori walked up, black notebook in tow. He had his host club smile on as he greeted me before turning it to something slightly more sinister as he looked at the twins who were still hanging off of me. "Hikaru, Kaoru, you're late."

"We were just helping, Mami-senpai." Kaoru offered with a shrug.

"She looked lost so we helped." Hikaru said wrapping one of my curls around his finger. I felt like my heart was going to explode out of my chest. _I should have left when I had the chance. _

"Hikaru, Kaoru. You have guests waiting." The boys let go of me with a huff. "Who would you like to designate as your host today, Kusumoto-san?" Kyoya's voice was calm and he was polite enough not to point out how much of a mess I was.

"Haruhi." I somehow managed to squeak out, my heart still pounding. He wrote something down in his notebook before gesturing to the open space near Haruhi. I scurried over, burying myself in the plush chair.

"Thank you for coming, Mami-chan. You didn't have to." Haruhi said quietly, leaning over toward me. Relief washed over me, she was happy I came.

"I wanted to help." We shared a smile.

"Mami-Senpai! It's so good to see you in the Host Club again." Suoh rushed over, putting an arm around my shoulders. "I see you've taken a liking to our natural host, Haruhi." My ears starting getting hot again before Haruhi saved me.

"Senpai, leave her alone. Don't you have your own costumers?" She went back to talking with the other girls, serving all of us tea, ignoring Suoh who was sulking in the corner after she ignored him. I sat silently, sipping on my sweetened tea. Haruhi didn't force me to join into the conversation, which I was grateful for. Instead, I found myself falling into the habit of observing people.

Haruhi was simply talking to the girls, giving them the occasional genuine compliment making them all smile and blush. Suoh had a flare for the dramatic. He was like a Bird of Paradise doing an elaborate mating dance but it looked like he enjoyed what he was doing and all of his compliments seemingly came from the heart. I think he genuinely found every girl beautiful. The twins were clinging to each other making all the girls around them swoon with brotherly love. Hikaru, I assumed remembering which way his hair was parted when they had dragged me inside, was more dominate, louder and brash. Kaoru followed his brother's lead but he seemed to think things through a bit more than his twin.

Ootori wasn't acting as a host today apparently. He sat alone at a table, typing away quickly on his laptop, a cup of tea sat next to him untouched. Honey was on his fifth slice of cake since I had entered the room, I couldn't help but smile thinking about how he would give Ojiisan a run for his money. Morinozuka sat quietly next to him, almost like a bodyguard. The girls squealed when he bent down to wipe Honey's face clean.

"Kusumoto-sempai?" I snapped back to reality and looked at the girl to my left. Her long dark hair fell in gentle waves around her face. She smiled at me sweetly, calming the sudden rush of anxiety. "When will you be bringing more animals to the host club? I loved getting to see an actual monkey up close."

"Oh, um..."

"What a brilliant idea princess!" Suoh suddenly appeared behind the couch the girl was sitting on. She blushed as he gave her a kiss on her hand in thanks. He just as quickly made his way on top of the table, somehow avoiding all of the delicate china that lay on the table. "The host club will have animal encounters featuring Mami-senpai!" Suoh pointed dramatically at me. A few girls in the room clapped in agreement.

"Unfortunately, that's the end of our club activities today. I do hope to see you lovely ladies here tomorrow." Ootori interrupted Suoh's declaration with such ease. I couldn't help but wonder how often the dark haired boy had to do this. The girls were slowly making their way out of the room, I quickly gathered my belonging and went to join the crowd, hoping to make an escape, only to be stopped by the twins grabbing my arms.

"Not so fast Mami-sempai."

"Tono needs to talk to you." They forced me back on to the plush couch. Ootori waited until the last guest had left before pinching the bridge of his nose. From what I had gathered he was the kind of person who liked to be in control of everything that was going on in the club. Which must have been hard given Suoh's impulsive personality.

"Tamaki, what did I say about making decisions without talking to me first?"

"But Kyoya." Suoh whined dramatically, falling to his knees begging to his classmate. "You can't deny it's a good idea. It's what the guests want."

"Don't I get a say in this?" I mumbled mostly to myself. Unfortunately the blonde heard me and practically flung himself at my feet.

"Mami-senpai, won't you help us to make girls happy with the magic of animals?" He grabbed my hands, as his violet eyes seemed to bore into my soul.

"Mi-chan, you should do it! Then we could have cake together!" Honey joined me on the couch with a bounce, also looking up at me sweetly. Between the two of them it was getting harder and harder to say no. My stomach twisted at the thought of disappointing the two boys at my feet.

"I don't really have a choice do I?" I could barely hear myself over my heart beating in my ears. At this rate, I'm going to die of heart failure.

Suoh grabbed my hands, pulling me up from the couch, and swung me around in a circle. Honey joined the celebration, jumping around us chanting about eating cake with a new friend. _What am I thinking? _My own 'fan club' was not going to like this. Not one bit.

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**Author's note**

**First off, Thank you all so much for all the follows, favorites and reviews. It made me so motivated to push through my current writer's block. Now, I know I said I'd leave it up to the majority for which pairing I went with (Tie as of when this is posted) but I've made the decision to make the official pairing Mori/Mami. Years ago when I first started thinking of story that's who I always imagined Mami ending up with. I have a new found love for Kyoya so I was tempted to pair him up with my OC but I don't think it would be as of a good relationship as Mori/Mami. I don't feel like Mami would challenge Kyoya enough, the only time she shows some backbone (at least for now) is when the safety of animals are involved. Otherwise, she's just an anxious mess. I do have another story brewing staring my favorite Shadow King but I'm not going to start that until this one is finished. I'm sorry if this decision upsets any of you but I hope you continue to like the story anyways.  
**

**Also I realized Nekozawa was in class 3B so I had to give him a bigger part in the story. I took some liberties with his character by also giving him anxiety in a classroom setting. I can't believe he would be comfortable sitting in a bright classroom for the majority of the school day. Plus he'll work into the story later as well. While, I'm not personally Mexican. I did live in a predominately Hispanic neighborhood where there were shaman shops on the corner and my neighbors frequently talked about going to see these healers for everything from talking to their dead relatives to getting assistance in pregnancy. While this may not be the case everywhere, I'm writing about what I know. (Don't worry, Mami isn't suddenly an expert in Black Magic, she just has passing knowledge of it.)**

**Please continue to review and let me know what you think! The next chapter is probably my favorite one that I've written so far but that's just because I have a soft spot for Tamaki. Stay tuned and thank you all once more for the support! **


	5. Chapter 5

**I own nothing but my original characters.**

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"Alright you guys ready to go?" I asked the two dogs who were staring at me as I pulled on my light hoodie. They both jumped off the bed and ran to the door as fast as they could, waiting for me to attach their leashes. I double-checked the pockets of my cargo pants, making sure I had my wallet, keys, and phone before letting the dogs pull me out the door.

It was a beautiful spring day, a light cool breeze made the cherry blossom petals fluttered down to the ground. I was happy I decided to walk to the vet today instead of taking the car for their yearly check up. There's nothing like nice walk to help clear your head. I greeted the familiar receptionist warmly before taking a seat in the waiting room. Oso proceeded lay down at my feet while Besos sat next to me on a chair, tongue flopping happily to the side. I smiled at her and scratched behind her ear.

Suddenly, a flash of yellow hit me in my chest and a tongue started to licked my face. I couldn't help but giggle a bit before gently pushing the beautiful and very friendly golden retriever to the side.

"Antoinette!" The familiar blonde appeared just as suddenly as his dog, who was now greeting Oso and Besos. Suoh was wearing a stylish black jacket over a patterned t-shirt with dark jeans. He grinned widely at me. "Mami-senpai!" Before I could return the greeting all three dogs jumped on him, knocking him to the floor. He laughed with glee as all three dogs tried to lick his face. I called Besos and Oso back after a minute and got them settled down.

"I'm sorry about that Suoh-san. They just love people."

"There's no need to be so formal, Mami-senpai." He pouted a bit before turning back to the dogs. "I love you guys too! What are your names?" He cooed while holding Besos's face in his hands, giving her the opportunity to steal another kiss.

"That one is Besos and the black one is Oso." Tamaki looked at me with confusion.

"Late?" I awkwardly rubbed the back of my neck.

"It's actually Spanish. It means Bear. Her name means Kisses. I'm guessing her name is Antoinette? She's beautiful, Tamaki-san." The golden had finally settled down but her tail was still going a million miles a minute. I couldn't help but smile, her personality matched Tamaki's perfectly.

"Yes! This is mon amour! Did you come here to experience the wonders of commoner's vet clinics?" To be honest, I was surprised to see someone from Ouran here. The vet clinic was small and in the less affluent side of town, it was nowhere near as fancy as some of the clinics my family owned.

"The vet was Ojiisan's apprentice and friend" My heart felt heavy, I didn't know if Ojiisan remembered him at this point. Tamaki's eyes flashed with emotion briefly, he looked as if he was going to say something but another voice interrupted him.

"Is. I still consider Hachiuma-senpai to be one of my greatest friends. And Tamaki-kun I asked you to stop calling us that." Akiba Hayato stood in the doorway a smile on his face as he shook his head. I hadn't seen him in almost three years but he looked almost exactly the same. His black hair was still cut close to his head, the wrinkles by his eyes were more pronounced and he still wore the same bright colored scrubs under his white lab coat. "Hey Mi-chan." I rushed over to him, my dogs not far behind. My heart swelled and started to feel lighter as I hugged my old friend, relaxing into his arms. "How have you been?" I shook my head into his chest, despite the concern apparent in his voice; I didn't want to worry him with my problems. Besos pushed her way between us before he could question me further. At least her jealously was good for something.

"Look at how big you've gotten! You're so beautiful!" She enthusiastically licked his face. "Lets go get you two checked up huh?" I managed to wave a quick goodbye to Tamaki before the two dogs pulled me into the back.

Twenty minutes, two clean bills of health, and way too many treats later, I walked back into the lobby, saying goodbye to Hayato along the way but I didn't get far. Tamaki was still here. He looked up from his phone to see what Antoinette was getting excited about and rushed over to me.

"You didn't have to wait for me, Tamaki-san." His smile was warm; it honestly made me a little uncomfortable. The attention was too much. Was he this over the top with everyone?

"Nonsense, Mami-senpai! I wanted to walk you home. Arisa-hime told me you live close by." I shot a quick glare at the receptionist that suddenly found her pen to be the most interesting thing in the world. _Traitor._ I sighed and started to walk out the door. I had watched and experienced Tamaki in action, once he decided on something, there was no stopping him. Hence why I was stuck putting on animal shows for the host club.

"Let's go then." I honestly couldn't tell who was happier, him or his dog. _They really are the same. _We fell into a comfortable silence while I let Oso set the pace back. Tamaki didn't try and force a conversation, which surprised me; he actually looked deep in thought.

"Well, this is it." I said breaking the silence. He looked at my house in total awe. It stuck out like a sore thumb among the more modern or traditional Japanese houses that neighbored it. It was considerably smaller than the other houses in the neighborhood but it sat on a huge piece of land. The red tile roof stood out in stark contrast to the pure white stucco walls.

"Would you like something to drink, Tamaki-san?" I took his running toward the door to admire the house as a yes. I thanked the butler that opened the door for us and lead Tamaki and the dogs toward the courtyard in the center of the house. It was completely enclosed but with the beautiful arches that surrounded it, it looked bigger. An elegant fountain bubbled in the middle of the perfectly landscaped yard. The dogs ran around the yard enjoying each other's company. I motioned for Tamaki to follow me back inside.

The inside was more modern. Almost all of grandfather's things had been replaced; the only thing my parents couldn't replace was the colorful tile work that accented every door frame. It was hard to find traces of my grandparents left in the house.

"Your house is amazing! What style is this?"

"It's called a Hacienda. Ojiisan had this house built for my Abuelita when they moved back to Japan after she became pregnant with my father. He fell in love with the culture and her instantly on his first trip to Mexico and wanted her to feel at home when she was with him." I sat the teapot on the stove, turning it on. " I was young when she passed so I don't remember her very well. He would tell me all these grand stories about the adventures they would go on." I placed two teacups on the counter before continuing encouraged by him leaning forward on his elbows, soaking in every word.

"He actually almost lost his company because of her. His family didn't approve of him not marrying into another family of wealth and threatened to take away his share of the company. Ojiisan ran off to Mexico to be with her anyways, leaving his family and their money behind. Together they worked hard and they eventually opened up several successful rehabilitation centers. When his father passed, my grandfather was given total control over the company, even though they hadn't spoken in years.

"Apparently Abuelita was in contact with his father and told him of all the wonderful things Ojiisan had accomplished. She had managed to impress him so much that Ojiisan was accepted back into the family. With the success of his family business to support them, my grandparents focused on expanding their outreach, making one of the biggest non-profits out there, all so they could complete their goal to help as many animals as possible. I hope that one day I can continue their legacy they worked so hard to build." My voice cracked toward the end, unable to hold back the emotion that had swelled up in my chest. I poured the hot water into the cups and looked up at Tamaki. Tears were falling from his face and he sniffled a little.

"What a beautiful love story!" He grabbed me into a hug and pulled me close. "You speak so highly of your grandfather. You two are very close aren't you?" He still had his hands on my shoulders, his eyes still shown with unshed tears but he looked as though he knew how I felt. He had known the same loss as me; he knew what I was going through without me having to put it into words. I couldn't stop the tears that came as the feelings overwhelmed me. My carefully constructed walls came crashing down. He just gathered me into his arms and let me sob against his shoulder. My whole body shook as the stress I had been shouldering on my own came flowing out.

"He's my best friend." I mumbled into this shoulder. My voice was horse and my throat hurt. "He has always there for me and soon he's not even going to know who I am. I'm going to walk into his room one day and he's not going to remember who I am. I'm watching the person I care most about in this world disappear before my eyes and there is nothing I can do to stop it." That was the first time I had said it out loud to myself. At some point Tamaki and I had ended up sitting on the floor, our backs resting against the counter, my head still on his shoulder as he stroked my hair. My body felt so heavy despite the fact that I felt like a huge weight had be lifted off my shoulders. I didn't have the energy to be embarrassed at the position we were in.

"Your story of your grandparents reminded me of my own parents." His voice was soft and serious. "My father fell madly in love with my mother but my grandmother didn't approve. Even though he loved my mother he went back to his family, leaving her and I behind. I lived with her in France until two years ago, when my father took me back with him. I had to say goodbye to her. I just hope she's happy and smiling. Your grandparents give me hope that one day we'll be a family again."

This was a side of Tamaki I hadn't seen over the last few weeks since we met. I was surprise at the amount of pain he was able to hide behind a smile. I understood why his look made me finally crack. We were both broken in our own way; we had both lost our best friend. We both could feel the overwhelming loneliness of losing a family member. Had he seen the loneliness in me? Is that why he insisted on walking me home? Why he insisted on me spending more time with his club?

"Tamaki?" I swallowed the lump in the throat. "Why?" Tamaki looked down at me briefly before focusing his gaze ahead. He didn't ask me to elaborate the question, which I was grateful for because I'm not sure I'd be able to.

"Your eyes looked sad. That's why I'm happy you agreed to join the host club. You look the happiest when you're talking about animals." He smiled down at me, neither of us tried to fill the silence. I rested my head on his shoulder for a few more moments, enjoying the comfort that came with it.

"Could you maybe stay a little longer? I don't want to be alone." The last part came out just barely above a whisper. He squeezed my shoulder and rested his head on mine.

"Of course."

After a few minutes we got off the floor and I apologized for burdening him with my problems and for ruining his jacket. Tamaki laughed and pulled me into another hug. "Mon Ami, this is what friends are for." I honestly almost started crying again. We continued to talk over the cold tea about our families. Tamaki was surprisingly easy to talk to. He told me his mother was a music teacher and had taught him how to play piano. Whenever he missed her he would play a tune from a Japanese drama that his father had sent him as child. He told me stories of his life in the second house while he waited to earn his grandmother's approval to join his father in the main house. Meanwhile, I told him how Ojiisan had taught me everything I knew about animals and I ended up showing him both of our field books. I told him of my parents moving us around frequently to do business deals, causing me to switch schools frequently. He got excited when I told him I had studied briefly in France for three months. His excitement didn't wane when I told him I didn't speak any French, he was just excited to know that we had visited some of the same towns.

I eventually gave him a full tour of the estate. He looked like a kid who went to the zoo for the first time; everything was so amazing to him. It was honestly refreshing to see. He was goofy and sometimes a bit too much but I had a new found appreciation for the boy who went out of his way to make me feel better. I was watching him chase the chickens around trying to pet one but they kept narrowly escaping.

"Hey Tamaki?" He stopped mid run, nearly tripping over his feet. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" I looked down at my hands, fiddling with the silver ring on my finger. I felt nervous waiting for his answer. Ouran was the first place where people had reached out and tried to get to know me. I didn't want to ruin it by asking too much of this budding friendship. He grabbed my hand, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"I'd love to Mami!" Tamaki said excitedly. I should have known better than to doubt the boy who forced me to join his club just to see me smile. The chef ended up making a traditional Mexican dish of Chili Rellenos, which Tamaki loved and he spent the whole dinner talking about how the host club had to do a Mexican theme some day. I couldn't help but smile the whole meal. It felt good to have a meal with someone again.

* * *

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter because I love how deep Tamaki's character is. I know it's a while before he starts to show his serious side but I like to believe it was always there. But there is some background for Mami's family. Thank you all for the follows and favorites. If there is anything you'd like to see happen, let me know and maybe it'll show up in the story!**

**Also I found out that Oso was also a Japanese word after I had already named the dogs. Both the spainsh and Japanese pronunciation sound similar too so I added that in. **


	6. Chapter 6

_Mami's inner thoughts_

**_Flashback_**

**People saying the same thing at the same time. **

I don't own anything but my own characters.

* * *

For the first time since I started at Ouran, I came to school with a smile, on a Monday no less! I felt lighter; the weight of shouldering my stress was gone thanks to my newest friend. Tamaki and I ended up spending the rest of the weekend texting each other, with him coming over again the next night for dinner. He had invited me over tonight with the promise of providing some traditional French cuisine. It felt good going to school knowing I had friends to look forward to. _Maybe Monday's aren't that bad. _

"Did you have a good weekend Kusumoto-senpai?" My gait faltered at the voice. Kyoya was leaning against one of the pillars. He stood up gracefully and tucked the little black notebook he was previously reading from into the jacket pocket of his uniform. The familiar smile didn't reach his eyes. Despite that I kept the smile on my face, still riding the high of the weekend.

"It was very nice, thank you. Please call me Mami, Kyoya-san, there's no need to so formal when we'll be working together."

"Of course, Mami-senpai." Again with the fake smile. "That's actually want I wanted to discuss with you. Would you meet me in Host Club after the last bell? There are things we need to discuss about this arrangement"

"Of course." He said a polite goodbye and headed off into the 2nd year wing. I watched his back and couldn't help but wonder how Tamaki and him became friends. I was pulled out of my thoughts by a hand grabbing my arm in a vice grip.

"Looks like the konketsujiis still trying to get close to those above her social status." My heart skipped a beat at the familiar voice. Matsuura Chiharu. Her long brown hair laid flat against her back, a sneer on her face was almost as fierce as the look in her eyes. Her lackeys flanked her on either side, their arms crossed with similar looks of disgust. They were all in 3D class and were the main source of my harassment. From what I had gathered from other students whispering and their comments toward me, they were all from families of local yakuza and they hated that a 'half-breed' was in a higher class than them. Unfortunately for me, my family didn't hold enough influence to discourage them, so their harassment has been slowly escalating.

I twisted my arm out of her grasp and without a word and tried to walk away. The two lackeys quickly blocked my pathway.

"Chiharu-senpai was talking to you."

"No one walks away from, Chiharu-senpai." I clutched my bag tighter and tried not to show how nervous I actually was, it would only encourage them.

"No, let the dirty half-breed go. We have some surprises planned for her later. She'll know her place soon enough." Her smile sent shivers down my spine. I wasted no time pushing past them and racing to the safety of my homeroom. _I take back what I said about Mondays._

* * *

"Mami-senpai, you're late." Haruhi looked up from her book as I made my way closer the same spot we had lunch previously. "What happened to your dress?" She eyed the large dark paint stain on the front.

* * *

_**I cautiously looked outside the classroom after the first bell. Chiharu's threat had me on edge. My next class was just three doors down so I had waited until the last possible minute to leave the safety of the classroom. There was no one in the hall. If I walked quickly I would still be on time. Something wet hit me in the chest, making me stop in my tracks. **_

_**I blinked a couple of times before I registered what had happened. Brown paint was slowly dripping down clashing with the yellow of my uniform. The girl, who had jumped out of the doorway, sneered at me. **_

" _**Chiharu-senpai was right, that is a much better color on you." Well this is definitely a step up from her shoving me into the wall or tripping me. **_

* * *

"Oh sorry, I spilled some paint in art class so I tried to clean it up, it didn't work out too well." I lied easily with a small chuckle.

"You should be more careful, senpai. Mix some dish soup with warm water, that should get it out." She scolded me before turning back to her book.

"Thanks, Haruhi-chan." My stomach was doing flips again. I felt guilty lying to my friend but this was my problem not hers. This wasn't the first time I had been bullied. It happened every once and a while, I was always the new girl, I either had an accent or didn't speak the language a lot of the time, or I just stuck out like a sore thumb. Not really fitting in anywhere. I found that most of the time the bullies would get bored if I didn't react.

"How was your weekend, Haruhi-chan?" She shrugged.

"It was okay. There was a great sale on beef this weekend." A small smile graced her lips. She got this dreamy look in her eyes before her thoughts went elsewhere and she remembered something. "I have dancing lessons all this week though."

"Tamaki-kun was telling me about it. It seems like it's going to be a grand party."

"Will you be coming, Mami-Senpai?" I looked down at my hands, picking at a cuticle.

"I don't think so, I don't really like crowds." She just nodded with an understanding look on her face. If she wasn't bribed with the ootro, I'm sure the younger classman would be spending the next weekend studying.

* * *

"Hello Kyoya-san, I hope you weren't waiting long." I rushed up to the raven-haired boy after closing the third music room door behind me. Kyoya glanced up from his notebook. He immediately quirked eyebrows in a silent question as he eyed the ugly brown stain on my dress. "Oh this? I tripped in art class and spilled paint on myself. So what do we need to discuss for the Host Club?" I tried to change the topic as quickly as possible. His eyes made me uncomfortable. It was like he could see into my soul. Luckily, he didn't question it; he set his notebook down and instead turned to his laptop that sat ready on the table.

"First, I want to ask if this is something you think you'll be able to do." He moved his cold eyes from the screen to mine. "It'll be no use to discuss anything further if you don't think you'll be able to host."

He was giving me a way out, I wasn't surprised that Kyoya had taken noticed of my uneasiness around people; I was surprised that he would be concerned about my feelings. Or maybe he was just concerned about wasting valuable time on this pet project of Tamaki's. I thought I would be happy to have an escape. I wouldn't have to worry about Chiharu and her lackeys, in fact, agreeing to do this would probably make it worse before it got better. But, I felt my heart sink at the thought.

"I'll be okay." I couldn't bring myself of look him in the eye. "I want to help Tamaki-kun out." I was surprised at how truthful I was being, not only to him but also to myself. I could feel his gaze on me for a few more heartbeats before it vanished.

"With the frequency that the Host Club will be using your families services, I was hoping we could come to an agreement. As we will be using your services frequently, two to three times a week, I think a discount could be reached." I motioned for him to show me the numbers on his laptop, which he slid over to me. I felt some of the uneasiness from before fade.

"How does the club make money?" I asked, taking my time looking over the well-organized portfolio.

"We host auctions of various items from the hosts, as well as selling photo albums."

"We could hold auctions for the customers to request a specific animal every few weeks. 3% of those profits should be enough to cover my expenses." I slid the laptop back over toward Kyoya, thankful that I had some business experience under my belt from opening the rehabilitation centers with Ojiisan. "I'd waive the transport and instructor fee. The only thing that would have to be covered would be caring for the animals."

"2% should be enough to cover that. And we'll encourage the guests to donate to a charity of your choice for that day. And I won't charge you for the cosplay rentals."

"Wait, I have to cosplay with you?"

"You'll be a member of the Host Club when you're doing the animal encounters. As I've said before, we strive to make the theme as immersive as possible. That includes you participating in-group cosplay when necessary. You'll also be expected to participate in any outside club activities. It's important that the club be a unified force." His eyes had a spark to them; I could tell he was actually enjoying the negotiations.

"Okay. That sounds fair to me, as long as the minimum is met by the 2%. If not, the club will pay out the difference. Now, I want to have final say on what animals are brought in. I'll try to accommodate any requests I get but I get veto power for any animal I deem too dangerous. I'm sorry but trying to bring an adolescent tiger into a small music room is not going to happen." Kyoya's eyes showed a brief flash of annoyance before he pushed his glasses up, blocking my line of vision.

"I agree, Tamaki doesn't always think things through."

"Also I'd like to request that there be no more than three animals in a single day, I can do four on occasion but I can't do anymore unless I get some help."

"We can just alternate what hosts will have animal encounters, that won't be a problem." He typed on his computer briefly before looking back at me. "I would like to continue to have a meeting this time every Monday to discuss that weeks animals." I nodded in agreement and he typed some more. "Anything else before we sign this business contract, Mami-senpai?"

"I would like the Host Club's help in advertising any events that the rehabilitation center or animal shelter may put on. I'll participate in the outside club events as long as I don't have to come to the club if I'm not doing an animal encounter." I waited while Kyoya typed away on his laptop.

"That sounds reasonable." I couldn't help but grin.

"You've got yourself a deal, Kyoya-san." We put the finishing touches on the business contract. We discussed briefly the animals I would be bringing in for the first official animal encounter. Kyoya had already figured out which hosts would be hosting the animals first in order to bring in the most profit. He seemed excited at the prospect of being able to sell photos of the hosts with cute animals. I glanced at the clock. I had about five minutes before everyone else showed up.

"Oh before you leave Mami-san." He pushed his glasses causing the signature glare. "I hope you know how to dance." In my thought process of gaining the ability to get some rest from the host club during the week, I had forgotten about the dance. I hung my head, silently cursing myself for being so careless.

* * *

"Mi-chan, what happened to your hand?" The small blonde looked at my bandaged hand as if it hurt him to see me hurt. I gave him a light smile and continued walking with him and Mori toward the cafeteria. They had showed up at my classroom after the lunch bell rung, insisting that I join them for lunch.

"Oh, I was helping to cook breakfast this morning and the knife slipped. It's a minor cut, nothing to worry about." Honey looked at me for another second with a frown on his face before it disappeared and he talked about what sweets he was going to have for lunch. In reality, the cut was pretty bad and my hand was throbbing slightly. The nurse said I was lucky I didn't need to have stitches. I had done my best to avoid Chiharu and her gang yesterday, unfortunately I was reward with razor blades being hidden in my desk this morning. Eventually, they would get tired and find some other person to torture; it's just a matter of time.

I could feel eyes on me as I followed them into the cafeteria. Chiharu started to make her way toward me but stopped when Honey bounced back to me, grabbing my undamaged hand, pulling me to the table. Her eyes darkened but she sat back down. Never taking her eyes off me. I tried my best to not look in her direction and smiled at the other hosts in greeting. Haruhi looked relieved to see me and shrugged the twins off of her shoulders, ignoring them completely.

"I didn't know you were so clumsy, Mami-senpai." She eyed the bandages causing all eyes to turn to me.

"I was just a little distracted making breakfast. I'm just nervous about today." At least this time it was only half a lie, I was incredibly nervous. Today was the first day I'd be presenting animals for the host club officially. Between the stress of the club, the dance and the bullying, I felt like I was going to pass out. Tamaki rushed over, wrapping me into a tight hug.

"Don't worry, Mami! You're going to be wonderful and all the girls will be so happy to see what friends you have brought us!" I laughed and pulled him off of me. His overwhelming positivity was comforting; he had enough faith in me for the both of us.

"You'll be great, Mi-chan! You know everything about all the animals." Honey cheered. Mori ruffled my hair with a slight smile, nodding in agreement. A rush of confidence filled me, they were all counting on me and they all believed in me. Most importantly, Ojiisan believed it me. He had gotten so excited when I told him about the deal I had made with the Host Club. I felt even more determined to focus on making this the best Host Club yet. I brought out Ojiisan's book and my bento from my bag and engrossed myself in studying over his notes.

* * *

"Thank you, I've got it from here." I waved the workers out of the third music room and surveyed the cages. I flipped through the paperwork and paused. _I can make this work. We just need to switch some things around. _

"Kyoya-san. I need to do a minor change in the animal arrangements." He turned his attention from his laptop to look at me. The glare off his glasses hid his eyes from view. The rest of the hosts were sitting nearby, the room all ready prepared for that days activity. "The original animal that was going to be with Tamaki was sick so they sent a replacement. I have to put that one with Haruhi and ask that the rest of hosts keep their distance while I have the animal out of the cage."

"And why can't Tamaki host with it?" Kyoya asked in tone that suggested that he wasn't happy about the last minute change.

"Ami-chan has some behavior issues but she'll be fine as long as I place her with Haruhi." I fidgeted with the papers in my hands. Honey looked at me, head tilted to the side.

"Do you know that Haru-chan is a girl, Mi-chan?" I slowly nodded. The tear stained face of Tamaki quickly replaced the small blonde's grinning one.

"You knew and didn't tell me?"

"To be fair, you didn't tell me either." Tamaki dramatic threw himself into the corner, occasionally looking over his shoulder to see if anyone was looking at him. The twins quickly went over to harass him, saying that I figured it out quicker than he did. Haruhi wasn't kidding when she said they would be dramatic.

"You do realize you have to keep this a secret, Mami-senpai?" Kyoya's voice was cold but he had a smile on his face. I nodded, honestly too scared to do anything else. Tamaki had told me about Kyoya's secret police. "Good, I'd hate to add to Haruhi's debt for loss of revenue." The brunette frowned and mumbled about how unfair that was under her breath. "Tamaki, club is about to start can you please compose yourself?"

"But Mommy, my sister knew about my daughter and didn't tell me!"

"Sister?" Hikaru appeared on my right wrapping an arm around my waist while another arm made it's way around my shoulders.

"I guess that makes you our Aunt." Kaoru said from my left, his grin matching his brother's.

**"And our new toy." ** Kaoru ran his hands through my short dark hair almost as if he was assessing it.

"Did you get gum stuck in your hair too Mami-senpai? Though you do have a more feminine cut than Haruhi."

"And you're skin tone is so much warmer than our usual models." Hikaru brought my good hand close to his face before rubbing his cheek to my palm. I could feel my ears getting red from all the attention. Hikaru and Kaoru shared a grin over my head.

"Say, Mami-sempai. Do you have a dress for the dance yet?" Kaoru twirled one of my curls around his finger.

"I-I was just going to wear something from my closet." Hikaru clutched his chest and dramatically leaned on me.

"Can you believe this, Kaoru? Wearing a dress for a second time." He clucked his tongue as his twin shook his head.

"Like she's a commoner." Haruhi muttered under her breath.

"**Let us find a dress for you!"** I was at a loss for words as their faces got closer to mine. I simply nodded, hoping that would be enough for them to back off.

"No! This is a good thing! With Mami-senpai around Haruhi will realize she's a girl." Tamaki popped back up again, pulling me away from the overly happy twins, forgetting that he was devastated just moments ago. I glanced over at Haruhi would looked slightly annoyed before ignoring Tamaki's ramblings.

I had decided to start the day with Honey and Mori's guests and I was grateful that I did. Honey had me sit between him and Mori, being between familiar people helped calm my nerves as Honey enthusiastically greeted their first set of guests.

"Mi-chan brought us a friend today!" He grinned up at me, silently asking if I was ready. I swallowed the lump in my throat.

"I actually picked this one out special for you, Honey-kun." I went over to the nearby cage and pulled out the small dark mammal. I cuddled him to my chest, whispering calming words as I made my way back to my seat. All the girls and Honey were sitting on the edge of their seats, even Mori's eyes shown with excitement. "Everyone, this is Takeo, the amami rabbit." I loosened my hold and let the small bunny look at everyone. His small ears twitched a bit as his even smaller eyes took everything in. Honey was practically bouncing in his seat.

"It's a bunny!" The girls cooed at how cute both the boy and the bunny were. I showed the girls how to hold him and offered to let them take turns. As they took turns holding him, I offered a bit of basic information, told them about our conservation efforts for his species and answered any question they had. It felt really good seeing how excited they were to hold the wild animal. I couldn't help but giggle at how cute Honey looked as he held the rabbit. Eventually Takeo ended back in my arms and the conversation had focused back on Honey.

I looked up, feeling someone gaze. Mori was staring at the rabbit in my arms. I offered him smile and silently held the rabbit out to him. He gently took to Takeo with a smile; his normally stoic face had softened as he scratched between the rabbit's small ears. Takeo looked even smaller as he huddled against the large senior's chest, instantly relaxing in a way I had only seen animals do with my grandfather or me. I debated it in my head for a minute.

"Mori-san, would you watch Takeo while I go work with the next animal?" He nodded his head, eyes still focused on the tiny ball of fur. I went over to the cage sitting near the twins; they had just gotten a new set of guests and were setting up the scene for me.

"I hope our animal guest is cute." Kaoru said to the girls sitting around him, his arm slung over the back of the couch. Hikaru quickly moved one hand to the back of Kaoru's neck, holding his brother's chin in the other.

" It won't be as cute as you were last night." Kaoru looked away, his face tinted pick as the girls swooned over brotherly love. _I really picked the right animal for these two jokers. _I pulled the brown and black raccoon dog out of his cage. He licked my nose, excited for the attention. I sat in the free seat next to Kaoru before addressing everyone.

"This is Genki." He got similar reactions from the girls that Takeo did. They cooed at how cute he was as he wiggled in my arms. One girl looked at me, amazed.

"Is that a tanuki?" I nodded, and launched into my spiel about him and offered to let them pet him if they wanted, even the twins were excited to see the mischievous folklore in the flesh.

"Hey Kaoru, he kind of looks like Haruhi, huh?" Hikaru held Genki up from under his armpits, placing the tanuki in line with Haruhi's face from a distance. The twins laughed at their own joke.

After a while, I bid them goodbye and put Genki away giving him a handful of blueberries as a reward before heading to the last cage by Haruhi's table. I coaxed the shy cream-colored marten out of the cage and slowly sat down next to Haruhi. The long mammal tried to burrow into my skirts.

"This is Ami, she's a Japanese Marten and a bit shy." I explained but the guests were understanding and kept their distance so she could get comfortable. Eventually she settled down and I let the girls feed her favorite treat of apples, which made everyone involved very happy. I put her back in her cage as the last of the girls left the room.

"Mami-chan! That was amazing! You did it!" Tamaki grabbed my hands and we jumped around in circles laughing. Honey joined in, not wanting to miss a chance to jump around. Kyoya walked up to us silently and pushed up his glasses.

"It was very successful, attendance was at a all time high and the amount of reservations for the next animal hosting broke our previous record. Good job, Mami-senpai."

_I can't wait to tell Ojiisan about this. _

* * *

**Author's Note: **

**Thank you all once again for all of the favorites and follows. It makes me so happy every time I get one. I hope you continue to enjoy the story. **

**To answer the one guest question: Mami agreed to join the club at the end of chapter five after getting guilt tripped by Tamaki and Honey. It's super official now.**

**All of the animals mentioned in this chapter are native to Japan. I also made it so Mami doesn't have to go to every club day because I don't think she'd be able to handle the club every day at this point. Eventually, she'll willingly go everyday but right now the social anxiety is too much, as we'll see at the dance. I'm going to add a bit of fluff in the next chapter. **


	7. Chapter 7

_Mami's inner thoughts_

**People talking in unison**

**I only own my own characters, nothing else.**

* * *

"I don't understand why I couldn't just get ready at home." I started to pick at my newly manicured nails before Hikaru slapped my hand away, again. The twins made me change into the dress they had made up shortly after Tamaki and I had arrived to the third music room. The excitable blond had forced me into his car before I even knew what were happening, house slippers and all. The rest of the hosts were slowly getting ready in the room as well. There was still an hour before the party officially started and I was already a wreck. Everything felt like too much, the paint on my nails felt heavy, the dress felt scratchy and my locket was ice cold against my hot skin.

"And give you time to try and come up with an excuse?" Kyoya quirked an eyebrow, lifting his eyes up from his ever present notebook. He was already dress up in his classic black suit. My ears heated up, I felt like I had just been caught with my hand in the cookie jar.

"Mami-senpai, try not to blush. You're going to mess up the shading." Kaoru lightly scolded me as he gently grabbed my chin again to finish up my makeup. It was much more than I would have done myself, which would have been just putting on some light eyeliner and a nude lipstick.

"And don't even think about touching your nails again." Hikaru said from behind me, just as my hand was reaching toward the dark green painted nails that had just finished drying. I wasn't used to the feeling of polish on my nails, having only gotten my nails done a handful of time. He was now brushing through my thick dark hair, preparing it for what style they had decided on, he debated under he breathe about whether or not to add extensions to my short hair. I truly felt like a toy they had called me earlier in the week.

"It's only right for a family to get ready together before a big event." Tamaki said with a flourish as he spun around, throwing glitter into the air, not caring if any got on to his white suit. "My sister looks so cute and my daughter will look even cuter." His eyes glazed over as he started to daydream. I could only assume it was about Haruhi in a dress. Just then, the freshman stepped out from the dressing room in a suit that clearly didn't belong to her but still looked good.

"Is Senpai okay?" Haruhi tugged at the sleeves of the brown jacket she was wearing. She was oblivious to the changes in Tamaki's over-the-top plan to get Kasugazaki Kanako and Suzushima Toru to realize their feelings toward each other. Tamaki had decided last minute yesterday to change the plan so that Haruhi would be dressed up as a girl who was trying to confess to Suzushima to get him to admit his feelings toward his fiancé. Tamaki had a stupid grin on his face, as he stayed lost in his daydream.

"Tama-chan is just really excited for the dance." Honey said as he bounced over in his cream colored suit, with Mori close on his heels. He was wearing a ruffled dress shirt under a simple black suit jacket, opting for a comber bun instead of a vest like the other hosts. Mori bent down to adjust Honey's bow tie after the small senior stopped next to the chair I was sitting in. The boys had all agreed that they wouldn't tell Haruhi of the revised plan just so they could see her in a dress. Honey had guilt tripped me into agreeing not to tell Haruhi after I protested.

"Mi-chan! You look so pretty!" He bounced on the tips of his toes, unable to contain his excitement, as my face got hot once again. Mori nodded in agreement behind him as the twins backed away and brushed their hands off, in sync, staring at their handy work.

"We did do a good job."

"I think it's some of our best work yet." Kaoru handed me a small hand mirror off the table filled with makeup and hair supplies. My breath caught in my throat, I almost didn't recognize myself. Hikaru, opting not to add in extensions, had expertly done a half fishtail braid starting on the right side, before sloping toward the back where it joined the rest of the lightly curled hair. Kaoru had done my make up in a subtle way and somehow made it so my face didn't look as red as it felt. My eyes had a very subtle gold shine to them, minuscule eyeliner and light mascara. The lipstick was darker than what I would have picked out, a dark burgundy, but it well with dark green of the dress. The A line dress hugged my waist before flowing out in light layers around my legs. The bust, that dipped a bit lower than I would have liked, had detailed beadwork on the front from my shoulders to the waist. The beads were the same color as the fabric and they swirled around each other forming small flowers and leaves if you looked close enough. The white bandage on my hand stood out like a soar thumb, but I still felt like a princess.

It was definitely better than anything I would have shown up in. Though, the exposed skin made me feel exposed. I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable as half of the hosts stared at me. _I'm already freaking out and these are your friends. What are you going to do when the dance actually starts?_ I self-consciously tugged at the top of the dress, trying to pull it up to cover more skin.

"Thank you, Hikaru-kun, Kaoru-kun. It's beautiful." I muttered before my phone chimed from the table where I had left my things.

"I trust that everything is going smoothly?" Kyoya appeared beside me as I read the new message. I nodded, focusing first on texting my team back before replying.

"You could have saved some money and had me be the animal caretaker for the night." Along with Tamaki's last minute plan, he had decided that there should be a photo opportunity for the guests tonight with some animals from the shelter. Which I had agreed to eagerly, thinking I would just have to spend the night watching over the pair of horses, but he had insisted on hiring someone else to care for them.

"But then you couldn't socialize, Mami-senpai." You could practically see the sarcasm dripping from Kyoya. Obviously he wasn't too happy about the extra money that had to be spent for tonight's already extravagant event but at least I wasn't the only pushover when it came to Tamaki. The blonde certainly had a way of getting his way.

* * *

The ballroom was filled with girls, which combined with the live orchestra, made the noise almost overwhelming. I stood next to the food, as it was the only spot that had enough room to move around comfortably without running into someone. It was a plus that the acoustics were pretty terrible in this spot making the noise a little more bearable. My hands kept flitting around. I couldn't keep them still. I tried to stay relaxed but I was sure my makeup was ruined from how much I felt like I was sweating. The hosts were all busy so far, accepting dances and talking with the guests, so I was left by myself in a roomful of strangers. I felt completely out of my element and on edge. _At least no one is going to ask me to dance._

Suddenly a large platter was placed in front of my face, it was filled to the brim with different kinds of cake. Mori looked down at me silently, waiting for me to take a slice. I studied the cakes for probably longer than I should have, happy to have a distraction from the crowd. Eventually, I found the one I was looking for, black forest cake. It was a simple cake but elegantly decorated with the whipped topping, chocolate ganache and a single cheery that sat on the top of the slice.

"Thank you, Mori-kun." I picked the cherry off the top and quickly eat it. I closed my eyes, allowing the sweet freshness of the cherry to wash over me. I slowly opened my eyes and found Mori was still standing next to me with the tray. "Are those for Honey-kun?" I asked in an attempt to extend the conversation. I felt better having a friend close by. He nodded, his eyes slowly moving from me to the bouncing senior on the dance floor. Honey wasn't dancing, so much as spinning the girls around in circles but he stopped as soon as he caught sight of the cake.

"Cake time!" Honey rushed over, after excusing himself from his current partner. Mori sat the platter down on a small table near by, giving the smaller boy easier access to the sweets. Honey happily dug into the sweets before looking up at me.

"Will you dance with me too, Mi-chan?" I couldn't say no to the puppy dog eyes he was giving me, no matter how much I wanted to. The thought of being out in the middle of the dance floor, made my stomach tighten.

"I would love to later, Honey-kun." I couldn't have sounded any less convincing. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a flash of grey. "I think I'm going go check on how the horses are doing." I took a couple of steps away from my safe zone before freezing. I would have to cross the ballroom to get where the horses were. My heart pounded in my chest as I fidgeted with my dress, silently cursing myself. I hate feeling like this. It was such a simple task to just simply walk across the ballroom but I couldn't bring my feet to move. The very quite rational voice in my head tried to tell me no one was looking at me but my irrational voice was drowning them out, telling me that everyone was staring at me.

A hand on my almost bare shoulder snapped me back to reality. Without a word, Mori gently grabbed my hand and lead me toward the courtyard. He had placed himself directly in front of me. It felt like he was blocking the world from me, saying 'don't worry, I'll face this head on so you don't have to'. Before I knew it, we were outside. The crisp night air felt nice against my hot skin and it was calming to breath in the fresh air. I instantly felt more comfortable out here, where there were less people and more open space. The two grey Arabian horses looked like they were calm and not bothered by the guests or the photographer. I looked up at the stoic looking boy; his eyes were now locked on the horses that were nearby.

"Would you like to meet them?" A small smile graced his face as his eyes lit up. I greeted the familiar caretaker, telling them that they could take a break to grab some of the fancy spread inside. Mori slowly raised his hand and let the horse raise their nose to meet him. He was so gentle with them, never making any sudden movements and letting them make the first move. I glanced up at the large clock on the wall.

"Mori-kun." He turned his dark eyes toward me. "It's almost time to start Tamaki's plan."

"Ah." Mori gave each horse one last pat before stepping away, only to pause when I didn't follow. He didn't say anything but his eyes were expressive as always.

"I think I'm going to stay out here a little longer." The caretaker wasn't back yet, and I wasn't quite ready to face the party again. He nodded in understanding still staring at me silently before taking off his suit jacket and draping it over my shoulders. I tried to protest, but he shook his head.

"You're shivering." He was right, the already warm jacket felt amazing against my now cool skin.

"T-thank you, Mori-kun. For everything." His lips ticked up a fraction before he left to join the rest of the hosts in Tamaki's elaborate plan. I pulled the jacket further around me, enjoying the warmth it brought.

"Looks like you're not taking the hint." The voice sent a chill down my spine. I slowly turned; already know who would be there. Chiharu and her two friends were standing a few feet away. She wore a formfitting black dress that contrasted drastically with her bright red lips. Her friends were wearing similar dresses with a tutu like bottoms, one was a light blue and the other was dark blue. Chiharu crossed her arms and took a step toward me. It was just the four of us in the courtyard.

"What am I going to have to do to get it through your thick skull? You're not wanted here." With each step they took toward me, I took one back until I ran into one of the horses. I could hear the swishing of the tails as the horses began to pick up on my own stress.

"Mami!" I never thought I would so happy to see Tamaki rushing toward me in a panic. Chiharu grimaced at the interruption but turned on her heel, disappearing into the dance. I let out a shaky breath; I didn't know I was holding, before turning to the horses to comfort them and myself.

"Mami, there you are! Everyone has disappeared!"

"They're starting the plan."

"They shouldn't have all left!" Tamaki turned and ran off as quickly as he had run in here. I watched his back as it disappeared into the crowd. I was thankful for his impeccable timing. I shuddered at the thought of what Chiharu would have done if he hadn't shown up. I pulled Mori's jacket closer around me, breathing in the comforting woodsy and citrus scent that still lingered on it.

* * *

"I don't know how you're walking around so easily in heels, Mami-senpai." Haruhi mumbled as she frowned at her wrapped up ankle. Tamaki's plan had worked out but at the expense of Haruhi's ankle. I simply shrugged, settling into the chair next to my friend. As soon as I caught sight of the hosts coming back from their plan, I stuck by them like glue. Not willing to give Chiharu the chance to catch me alone. "I took all those dance lessons for nothing too."

"Mi-chan~!" Honey bounced over, landing in my lap before wrapping his arms around my neck. "Will you dance with me now?"

"Oh, but I don't want to leave Haruhi alone." His eyes instantly started to water with tears that threatened to fall. Haruhi just waved her hand, not at all phased by the waterworks.

"You can go Mami-senpai. I'm fine." The tears disappeared as quickly as they appeared at Honey cheered. He leapt from my lap, grabbing my good hand and led me to the dance floor. I glanced back at Haruhi, pleading for help but she either didn't see me or chose to ignore my silent pleas.

"Just relax, Mi-chan." Honey said with a soft smile. I slowly relaxed as he swung us around in circles. His laughter was infectious and soon I found myself joining in as my anxiety melted away.

"**Now we'll have the last event."**The twins announced as the song came to an end. They were in the spotlight, both holding a microphone. They announced the winner of the dance contest along with the modified prize of Haruhi giving the promised kiss. Tamaki instantly freaked out turning to the twins who threw Kyoya under the bus for the idea. _So this is how Kyoya's getting his revenge. _The boy in question was whispering in Haruhi's ear before she got up to join the winner of the contest on the stage.

"Isn't this her first kiss?" Honey questioned next to me just loud enough for Tamaki to hear. His eyes had the same twinkle the twins had in theirs.

"HOLD THAT KISS!" Tamaki rushed forward in a panic, only to trip, pushing Haruhi into Kanako, causing them to kiss on the lips. Everyone froze as the two shocked girls back up from each other. Suddenly, the rest of the guests squealed in delight and began to talk frantically about how Tamaki was a kissing machine. I felt a tug on my hand. Honey was looking up at me with big grin on his face.

"Lets go eat cake with Haru-chan, Mi-chan!" I nodded in agreement, happy to get off the dance floor. The three of us enjoyed the cake as we watched the twins poke fun at Tamaki. Eventually the dance began to wind down. Slowly the guests left the ballroom until it was just the Host Club and the workers that were already cleaning everything up.

"What a night!" Hikaru stretched his arms upward as Kaoru grabbed one of his shoulders, rolling it backward.

"I can't wait to go home and sleep."

"Before we go…" I couldn't bring myself to finish that thought. The stress from the dance had me exhausted. Honey gave my hand a gentle squeeze, encouraging me to continue. I swallowed hard. "Can we take a photo together? I want to show Ojiisan."

"What a wonderful idea!" Tamaki perked up from his slump, forgetting about being called a pervert. "It'll be our first family photo!"

"Can we take it with the horses?" Honey asked, equally as excited as Tamaki. Everyone looked toward the host club's mom for permission. Kyoya shrugged his shoulders the tiniest bit.

"I don't see why not." Tamaki, Honey and the twins cheered before they herded everyone over to the courtyard. I handed my phone to the caretaker before joining the rest of the hosts.

"Say cheese!" The caretaker said cheerily before quickly snapping a photo. She frowned slightly at the screen as she walked over to me. "I can take another photo if you like, Kusumoto-san."

The photo looked like pure chaos. One of the horses had decided to try and snack on Tamaki's hair. This caused the twins to double over in laughter as Tamaki flailed his arms. Honey was on Mori's shoulders, looking down in concern for the younger boy. Mori was trying to coax the horse into releasing the host king's hair. Meanwhile, Kyoya looked annoyed as Tamaki nearly hit him. Haruhi and I were the only ones looking at the camera, I had an arm around her shoulders, letting her lean against me so she wouldn't have to put pressure on her twisted ankle. I couldn't help but smile.

"No, it's perfect."

* * *

**Author's note:**

**Thank you all for all of the follows and favorites for my first story! I hope you're all enjoying it. I'm sorry I didn't update last week, my schedule got crazy and I orginally wasn't going to make Mami go to the dance but I realized that there was no way Tamaki would allow her not to go. I through in a little bit of fluff in there for you as an apology. I'm going to try my best to not to go more than two weeks without updating. **

**Please excuse any grammar or spelling mistakes. And if you have a second, please leave a quick review! **


	8. Chapter 8

_**Mami's inner thoughts**_

**Multiple people talking at once.  
**

**I do not own anything but my orginal characters. **

**Warning: This chapter contains discriptions of a panic attack and depression. **

* * *

"Excuse me, Kusumoto-san?" I instantly froze. I had been on edge everyday since running into Chiharu at the dance. Nothing had happened yet beside the occasional glare from afar. Today at lunch though, she caught me eye and gave me a smile that sent chills down my spine but still nothing happened. Slowly, I lifted my head up from my math notes to find two girls I vaguely remember seeing at the host club. The taller one nudged her friend, which earned her a smack on the arm but the shorter one still spoke up.

"We were wondering when you'd be coming back to the Host club again?"

"Oh, um…tomorrow." They both smiled widely while looking at each other.

"Will we get to hold a cute animal again?" I nodded causing them the squeal in excitement. The last bell rang signaling the end of the day, they thanked me before returning to their group of friends who also squealed after hearing the news. Tamaki was right, it felt really good being able to put a smile on someone's face. I grabbed my math notes and went to grab my bag. _Weird. I'm pretty sure I left it right here._

"What are you looking for, Mi-chan?" Honey suddenly bounced into my vision.

"Hello, Honey-kun" I turned to look up at the stoic senior. "Hello, Mori-kun." He hummed in greeting and slightly dipped his head. I was no longer surprised at them being in the B-class section of school. Ever since the dance they had made it a habit to pick me from the classroom for lunch and after the school day. "My bag. I must have misplaced it." I glanced around the floor by my desk again. My fellow seniors joined me in the search without hesitation.

"Found it!" Honey cheered after a minute. He held it up triumphantly by the door. It must have gotten accidently kicked as people left. I thanked him and shouldered my bag, keeping my math notes out.

"Are you going to come to the Host club today, Mi-chan?" The blonde had taken his usual spot on Mori's shoulders as we made our way out of the classroom so I had to look up to meet his eye.

"I'm sorry, Honey-kun, I have to get a jump start on my math test next week but I'll be there tomorrow." That didn't stop him from pouting slightly before his face brightened up having come up with an idea.

"I'll help you study, Mi-chan! I love math." I hesitated briefly. It would be useful to have someone around who knew what they were doing; I was completely lost when it came to numbers.

"I don't think Kyoya-san would like me distracting you." He waved his hand dismissively before jumping off his friend's shoulders gracefully. Honey quickly grabbed the books from my arms, gave them to Mori and pulled me along with him by my good hand toward the music wing.

"I'll help you before and in between clients. We can have cake together! It'll be a lot of fun, ne, Takashi?"

"Ah." I looked up at Mori. His face was emotionless but his eyes spoke for him. _Just give in, it'll be easier_. I sighed and stopped trying to resist. After we entered the third music room, Honey stopped at a table nearby the one the seniors hosted at. It was usually used to hold the extra cake.

"You can set up here, Mi-chan~. I'll go get us some yummy cake!" Mori silently handed me my books back. I thanked him, which earned me a small smile before he left to join Honey on the search for cake. I could hear that the other hosts had arrived soon after us as I placed my things on the table. I chuckled to myself when I heard Tamaki yelling at the twins for 'harassing his daughter'. _They are too much_, I thought to myself as I opened my bag.

* * *

Other P.O.V.

"Stay away from my daughter, you little devils." Tamaki yelled as he followed the laughing twins into the third music room. They had succeeded on getting a rise out of the host club king yet again.

"I'm not your daughter, senpai." Haruhi said with a sigh having no choice but to join them in the room. The thought of his precious daughter being so rebellious was almost too much to handle. His violet eyes searched the room quickly for Kyoya to seek some comfort from him but found a better replacement instead. Before he could make his dramatic entrance over to his dark haired friend, she dropped to her knees with a resounding thud. All other thoughts left his mind as he raced over.

"Mami?" She didn't react at all to her name being called. Tamaki scanned the scene in front of him and felt his stomach drop. Mami's bag lay open on the table; a few torn pages had fallen from overflowing bag to the floor. He recognized the handwriting; Mami had shown him many times over the last couple of days as she got herself ready for the animal encounters. Her body was shaking as her breath became more frantic. Mami's dark caramel eyes stayed focused on the torn pages in front of her as the rest of the hosts gathered around the scene.

"Mori-senpai, can you bring her over here please?" Kyoya asked calmly as he set the first aid kit down next to one of the plush couches. Mori picked up her up easily, struggling only slightly as she fought to keep the torn pages in her line of sight. Her breaths were becoming more and more ragged. He gently sat her down and placed his jacket over her shoulders to try and warm up her cold skin.

"Kyoya, what's happening?" Tamaki was frantic as he shook his best friend's shoulder. Kyoya pushed him off with a glare before settling in front of girl. Tamaki quietly took a place next to the rest of the hosts.

"Mami." She didn't respond at all. Her eyes looked wild as they shifted from one torn page to the next.. Kyoya placed himself more directly in front of her, effectively blocking her vision. "Mami, you need to breath or you're going to pass out." That seemed to get through to her panic induced state. Her eyes began darting around frantically as her breath got even more ragged. Her body trembled underneath the senior's coat.

"Hey, look at me." Kyoya's voice was calm but forceful as he gently gripped the sides of her face. Her eyes stayed focused on his after a few more soft words of encouragement. "Good. Now breath with me." He expertly coached her through breathing exercise until she was breathing normally on her own. Mami's eyes were still unfocused and hazy. Kyoya gently encouraged Mami to open her mouth, which she did a bit robotically. He placed a couple of pills in her mouth and instructed her to swallow after offering her some water. She followed his direction without question. The black haired teen helped her lay down as her body caught up from the sudden loss of adrenaline. No one said a word until they were sure she was sleeping.

"Is Mi-chan going to be okay?" Honey had tears flowing down his face as he clutched his pink rabbit to his chest. Mori placed a comforting hand on his cousin's shoulder. They watched as Kyoya carefully removed the bloodied bandage from her hand. She had managed to break open the wound again in her panicked state.

"She needs to let her body rest. She'll sleep for a while with the mild-sedative I gave her." Kyoya finished wrapping her hand and began to clean up the mess around him. He went to stand up but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Tamaki looked down at him with a concerned look on his face. He tried to say something but the words got stuck in his throat. Kyoya nodded in understanding and patted the boy's hand.

"Who would do this?" Kaoru's voice didn't have any of the merriment that was in it just moments before. He had picked up the few pages that had fallen to the floor as Haruhi picked up the bag. She looked down at it sadly, carefully taking out what was left the book. The cover was also ripped apart, a few pages were still inside but most were ripped out or torn in half. Kyoya took the ruined field book from Haruhi's hands, looking it over carefully.

"This was her Ojiisan's." Haruhi said sadly, looking at the sleeping girl on the couch. Mami shivered in her sleep and pulled Mori's jacket closer before settling down again.

"He can just make her a new one right?" Hikaru asked looking over his brother's shoulder. Tamaki shook his head as he sat down on the floor next to the couch. He held onto Mami's hand, rubbing comforting circles into the back of it.

"No." Tamaki said softly. "His memory isn't what it used to be." He knew how much that book meant to her. It was a reminder of all the happy times she shared with her grandfather growing up.

"I thought it had stopped." Honey's face had grown darker as he stared down at the floor. Everyone except for Mori and Kyoya looked at the small senior with surprise.

"What are you talking about Honey-senpai?" Haruhi asked.

"I suspected that Matsuura Chiharu has been bullying Mami-sempai for a while now." All eyes turned to Kyoya who was now typing furiously. "I asked Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai to walk with her between classes to keep an eye on her after my security team alerted me to a possible verbal altercation during the dance. I had no official proof until now." He held up the back cover of the tattered book. Scratched into the back was 'Know your place'. The girl had stupidly signed her name underneath, giving Kyoya the proof he needed to set his plan into action.

"They wouldn't bother her if Takashi and I were near her. They hadn't tried anything for a couple days, I thought she had just given up."

"When did you start to suspect it?" Tamaki asked quietly as he stared at Mami's peaceful face. How had she managed to hide this from him? Why didn't she tell him this was happening? He scolded himself for not seeing the signs, first with Haruhi and now with Mami.

"She doesn't take art classes." Kyoya said simply before going back to typing away on his laptop, using a bit more force than necessary. Tamaki looked down sadly at his newest friend and brushed a bit of hair out of her face. He looked up at the other hosts with a determined look on his face.

"We're going to fix this."

* * *

Mami's POV

It had been three days since I had woken up that night in my room after the incident. I couldn't gather the energy to do anything or even talk to anyone. If it weren't for Tamaki coming over every night and forcing me to eat something, I doubt I would have even eaten. He never tried to force me to talk he just rambled on about what had happened in the club that day or something that Antoinette had done. He went on a while about some girl from France named Renge who was apparently a crazy Otaku. The movie they made sounded kind of awful to me but it seemed like Tamaki had fun.

"Kusumoto-san, you have visitors." One of the maids said with a bow, letting her self out of the dark room. I groaned as the light was turned on, burying my head under the covers to save my eyes. My hiding place didn't last long before the covers were ripped off.

"Wow, Mami-senpai-"

"You look like shit"

I nearly fell off the bed. The entire host club was in my room. The twins had made their way into my closet and were in the process of throwing the contents on the floor. Kyoya was looking around the room, making the occasional note in his black notebook. Besos was making a fool of herself by trying to reach Mori's face, which caused Honey to go into a fit of giggles. Tamaki and Oso greeted each other with equal enthusiasm. Haruhi placed a box she had been carrying on my desk after moving the untouched breakfast off to the side.

"Come on." With more strength than I thought possible from her, she pulled me out of bed and into my bathroom, shutting the door before any of the boys could join us. Haruhi started the water in the tub waiting until it was the perfect temperature before putting the plug in. I caught a look of myself in the mirror and the twins weren't lying. I did look like shit. My hair was sticking up in twenty different directions. I could see at least two rats nest starting to grow as well. The bags under my eyes were dark and made my eyes look sunken and sickly. Haruhi helped me get unclothed and gently guided me to the tub.

The warm water engulfed my body like a blanket right out of the dryer. Lavender filled my nose and I instantly relaxed into the water. Skillfully, Haruhi poured water over my head and washed my hair, slowly working the tangles out with a comb.

"I'm sorry." I didn't think she would hear me; it barely came out as a whisper.

"You have nothing to be sorry for Mami-senpai." Her voice was calm as she gently tried to work out a knot. "We were all worried about you." She continued to brush through my hair until all the tangles were out.

"You're really good at this." I tried to joke though I was thankful for her effort. My body felt so heavy, I didn't have the energy to do this myself. Haruhi was quite for the moment before continuing to rub a washcloth over my back.

"My father gets depressed sometimes too." All I could do was nod silently in understanding. She handed the cloth to me with a smile. "Wash your face and get dry. I'll get you some clothes." I did as I was told and wrapped myself in the plush towel near by. I already felt better than I did this morning. I stood there awkwardly until Haruhi came back with some clean clothes; she had taken my dirty pajamas with her probably knowing I would have just put those back on. I thanked her quietly as she closed the door behind her. I put on my favorite pair of jeans and the fitted green tee she had given me before leaving the safety of the bathroom. I knew that if I took too long, even Haruhi wouldn't be able to stop Tamaki from barging in.

"Mi-Chan!" Honey nearly knocked me over as soon as I opened the door. He buried his head into my stomach. I patted the back of his head, trying to comfort him. I hadn't realized how much I worried them until now. Guilt washed over me, making my stomach twist. He grabbed my hand and guided me back to my bed and forced me to sit down so we were closer to eye level. "Next time, you should tell us if someone is bullying you, Mi-chan. We can't help if you don't let us." I flinched back as he scolded me. I looked down at my hands, turning my ring around my finger.

"I'm sorry." His once stern face transformed back into his usual happy one.

"It's okay, Mi-chan. Kyo-chan took care of those bad girls." My eyes shot over to the second year that was leaning coolly against my desk.

"I do hope they packed warmly, I heard Greenland can get quite frigid." He smirked, sending shivers down my spine. It also warmed my heart to know that he would go to such lengths for me. Two sets of arms made their way around my shoulders.

"You should be happy he's on your side." Hikaru said with a grin.

"Honestly, I think they got off easy." Kaoru said with a shrug. "Mami-senpai we need to discuss your closet later."

"**It needs an overhaul."** They had made a huge mess of my clothes but before I could get mad, Tamaki grabbed my hands.

"Mami, we got you something. We know we can't replace what you lost but we tried our best." He pulled the box Haruhi had been carrying seemingly out of nowhere and placed it in my lap. Slowly, I opened it with encouragement from the twins who threatened to open it themselves if I took any longer. It was a book. I ran my hand down the cover, admiring the craftsmanship. My breath caught in my throat as I opened it. It was Ojiisan's pages. They were all there, even the ones that had been burned into the back of my mind as being torn in half were there and near perfect.

"We had to guess the order of the pages." Hikaru explained.

"But we saved them all. They're all there." Kaoru smiled softly.

"And we saved the leather from the original for the spine!" Honey piped up.

I sniffled as tears began to fall down my cheeks.

"Thank you. For everything." I sniffled some more. "I'm sorry for worrying you all."

"It's okay to not be okay." Mori said placing a hand on my head, ruffling my wet hair like he would Honey's from time to time. It was surprisingly comforting.

"It's okay to be sad too, Mami-senpai." Haruhi said with a smile.

"We're not going to force you to be happy, isn't that right Tamaki?" Kyoya looked at Tamaki with a look that made the blonde shrink back almost comically. I couldn't help but let out a small chuckle.

"And you shouldn't force yourself either."

"Let it come naturally." The twins said from either side of me. Warmth was growing inside of me with each passing comment. They had made me feel so loved. No one had ever done something like this for me, let alone people I had only met a month ago. Honey launched himself into my lap, hugging me around the waist.

"And I'll do the smiling for both of us until you're ready, okay Mi-chan?" He grinned up at me. All I could do was nod as the words got stuck in my throat. _I'm so lucky to have such great friends, Ojiisan._

* * *

**Author's note:**

**Sorry about the delayed update, my own anxiety and depression has been taking it toll. I'm trying my best to stay motivated so please continue to be patient with me. I took a lot of liberties with this chapter for the sake of the story so I'm sorry if it's too unbelievable. I promise that's as bad as it gets, please dont hate me for it. Don't worry Kyoya isn't about to just go around throwing pills at people. **

**I took the conversation at the end from a LnR comic (you can find them on Facebook or Tapas) that really hit home and matched the feeling I was trying to go for. I also took some quotes from Winnie the Pooh as well, I don't own either of those things so please support the creatures as well. **

**Thank you all for the wonderful and supportive reviews. Please continue to enjoy this story. **


	9. Chapter 9

_Mami's inner thoughts_

**People talking in unison**

**I own nothing but my own characters. **

* * *

"But Mami! You have to help us protect Haruhi's secret!" Tamaki had tears streaming down his face. He had pulled me into the Host Club room as I was walking to the library to get some work done. Physical Exams were the next day and Tamaki was freaking out about how to save his 'daughter'. _Just last night he was gushing over how cute Haruhi would look in the girl's school uniform_.

"I'm sure you guys have it covered. Besides, I'll be on the opposite side of campus, I won't be much help." I couldn't help but glance at the elaborate plan Tamaki had wrote on the chalkboard in the middle of the room. _Tamaki's plan is to pretend that he's Haruhi? Does he not realize there is a huge height difference? _

"She has a point Tamaki. Class B will be having their examinations on the West side of campus while Class A is in the East wing." Kyoya explained sending Tamaki into a dark corner to mope. I just shook my head and headed toward the doors.

"I promise I'll come over as soon as my physical is done. I really need to go though, Tamaki. I have a lot of work to do from missing all those days." Honey suddenly jumped on my back almost knocking me over.

"Takashi and I will help you, Mi-chan! We're not hosting today and we didn't get to help you before." I glanced up to look at the taller senior. I felt kind of bad that Honey volunteered them both but I would appreciate the help.

"You don't mind?" Mori just shook his head. Honey dropped down from my back before grabbing our hands, pulling us out of the third music room. He skipped happily ahead of us, humming to him self as he led us toward one of the libraries.

"Mori-kun, are you going to tell Tamaki that his plan is never going to work?" To my surprise, he chuckled. I don't think I had ever heard him laugh before; it was nice and made my stomach do flips.

"No."

"I can't wait to see Tama-chan in a wig." Honey giggled. I couldn't help but laugh with them. I don't know what Tamaki had done to deserve such a prank but he probably earned it if even Mori was in on it. As we continued to follow Honey, I realized something.

"Honey-kun, the libraries are the other way."

"I know Mi-chan! They don't allow cake in the library." He pouted a bit at the thought of a cake-less place before perking up again. "So we're going to go study at my house and eat cake together~!" I sent a quick text to my driver letting them know I wouldn't need them to pick me up from school today as we climbed into Honey's limo. I wasn't surprised to see that his limo had a case filled with small cakes inside. _I like sweets as much as the next person but Honey really takes it to another level. _

Honey sat right next to the cake case for easy access and started to munch on the treats happily. Mori sat next to him, pulling out a novel from his bag. It had a picture of a traditional samurai on horse back on the front. I settled in next to him, happily taking a slice of cake when Honey offered. Honey continued to munch away happily on the cake, the case slowly becoming more and more bare.

"Oh! Mori-kun, I almost forgot." I dug around in my bag and pulled out the freshly clean and folded jacket. "I had it cleaned for you. Thank you for letting me um… borrow it." Mori gently took the jacket from my hands and placed it in his lap. He rewarded me with one of his rare smiles.

"You're welcome." _Someone is talkative today. _

"Mi-chan! We're here!" Honey bounded out of the car with amazing speed. I followed after him, stopping short after seeing his house, well more like estate. It was huge. From what I could see it was made up of several traditional Japanese style buildings.

"All of this is your house?" I was used to big houses but this seemed to be a bit much.

"No silly. Just that one is mine." He pointed toward the biggest one of the property. "The rest are other Haninozuka families. We also have three dojos! Takashi lives next door too!" _Right, Tamaki mentioned that they were cousins. I guess it would make sense for their families to live so close together. _Honey grabbed my hand and excitedly led me toward his house, stopping only to allow us to remove our shoes and put on slippers before continuing further into the house. Eventually he stopped at a room that looked like a dinning room. Honey pushed me on to a cushion next to the low table before taking one for him self.

As soon as we all sat around the table, a servant came in with a tray filled with cake. I wouldn't be surprised if this was an everyday thing. Honey happily ate the offered cake while explaining how to do the math problem. He was amazingly good at math, doing the calculations in his head in a few seconds while I struggled to get the correct result with the help of my calculator. He was patient though, never getting frustrated or making fun of me for making simple mistakes.

"Ugh!" I stretched my arms up above my head, trying to loosen up my tight shoulders. I had gotten a chunk of work done but I needed a small break, my brain felt like it might explode. "Oh! Do you guys want to see pictures of the our newest addition at the rehabilitation center?" I was scrolling through my phone trying to find the pictures when the sliding door slammed open. I let out a short scream from the sudden loud noise, dropping my phone in the process. I could feel my face growing warm when the two boys looked at me with a questioning look.

"Mitsukuni, prepare yourself!" In the doorway stood a younger boy with golden-brown hair and glasses, dressed in a traditional gi. He looked like larger version of Honey. He got into a battle stance, his light brown eyes focused only on Honey, who had put the cake he was working on down.

"Hi Chika, do you want some cake?" The younger boy didn't answer; instead he threw himself at Honey with a flying kick, which Honey easily dodged. Mori pulled me away from the table to the safety of the far wall. He didn't seem too concerned with the intense battle that was happening before us. Honey continued to dodge that younger boy's advances, landing a few blows here and there. It was amazing to watch how naturally both of their bodies moved and responded to their opponents attacks.

"Mitsukuni wins again." I looked up at Mori, tearing my eyes away from the battle for a brief second before turning back to see what he was talking about. Honey had knocked the boy back with a staff he had pulled from somewhere, causing the boy to fall on his back. He began to brush himself off with a sour look on his face before the sliding door slammed open once again.

"Yasuchika!" A tall dark haired boy who looked strikingly similar to Mori raced in and hit the brown haired boy on the head with a shinai. "You shouldn't be so rude to your brother especially when he has company over." The dark haired boy turned to me and bowed deeply, forcing Yasuchika's head down, with a loud protest. "We're sorry for intruding."

"Satoshi." With a single word from Mori, Satoshi let go of the younger Haninozuka. Yasuchika grumbled under his breath as he nursed the bump forming on the top of his head.

"Sorry, Taka-nii! We were training and he slipped away." He pulled Yasuchika into a headlock, which caused the dark blonde to protest.

"It's okay Sato-chan! This is our friend Kusumoto Mami. Mi-chan this is my brother Yasuchika and Takashi's brother, Satoshi."

"Oh so you're the Mami, Taka-nii is always talking about!" Satoshi grinned widely. I glanced up at Mori, trying to picture him talking about me. His face was stoic as usual but his eyes were narrowed just ever so slightly. I looked back at the younger boys.

"I can see the family resemblance."

"I LOOK NOTHING LIKE HIM!" Yasuchika yelled, his fists were balled up. I'm not ashamed to admit it, but I was terrified of this middle schooler. Satoshi was quick to scold him, knocking him upside the head again, causing tears to pool in his eyes.

"What were you going to show us Mi-chan?" Honey asked smiling sweetly, bringing my attention back. I hurriedly picked up my fallen phone, fumbling a bit.

"Oh, we recently had two Siberian tiger cubs born at the rehabilitation center and they just opened their eyes." Honey and Satoshi rushed over behind me as I pulled the photos up. Mori simply leaned over to catch a glimpse. Honey and Satoshi cooed about how cute they were and squealed with delight when I played a video of the two cubs playing with their first ball.

"Baby tigers." Yasuchika mumbled under his breath. His body was tense but a light blush brushed across his cheeks.

"Chika-chan! Come look at how cute they are!"

"Cute things are for the weak." The younger brother crossed his arms and turned away from Honey, refusing to look at him. I watched as Honey's face dropped slightly. The room fell into a moment to tense silence, I wanted to say something to comfort my friend but I couldn't figure out the right words to say without setting Yasuchika off again.

"I should probably head out though." I broke the silence after glancing at the time. "I'm going to visit Ojiisan tonight, I don't want to be too late." I gathered my things "Thank you so much for your help. It was really nice to meet you, Satoshi-kun, Yasuchika-kun." I bowed slightly toward the younger boys as the older ones started to get up to walk me out.

"W-wait." Yasuchika said suddenly, catching me by surprise but he quickly gathered himself. "I'll show you the way out, I don't want to be near this freak any longer."

"Thanks Chika! See you tomorrow Mi-chan." The younger boy grumbled under his breath again and stomped out of the room. I looked back at the other boys, silently pleading for them to come along. However, Honey just shrugged with a sad smile while Mori was holding back Satoshi from hitting Yasuchika again. With a small wave, I reluctantly followed Yasuchika out the door.

We walked together in an uncomfortable silence, I could tell he wanted to say something but I was afraid to poke the beast. The younger boy made me nervous. He was angry and unpredictable. He attacked his own brother out of nowhere! I just fiddled with my ring and hoped that my driver was already waiting for me so I wouldn't have to withstand the awkwardness for much longer.

"-tiger." His voice was soft but it broke through me scolding myself for being scared of a middle schooler.

"Huh?" Yasuchika's face was flushed pink once again. He refused to look me in the eye but repeated himself a little louder this time.

"Can I see the baby tigers?" His blush deepened as he rushed to finish his explanation. "Only because I want to see your rehabilitation efforts." I pulled my phone out yet again and showed him the video of the cubs. He took off his glasses as tears filled his eyes.

"They're so cute." He hurriedly brushed the tears away. I pretended not to notice them. Yasuchika was more similar to his brother than I had originally thought. Preteen boys were one species I don't think I'll ever be able to understand.

"If you want I can send you more photos of them and our other babies. So you can see the result of our efforts." Apparently that was the right thing to say because Yasuchika looked exactly like Honey in that moment but he hurriedly collected himself, though he was unsuccessful in getting rid of the blush on his cheeks. He gave me his number quickly, while still trying to play cool, and I sent a few photos over with the promise of sending more. He looked at the pictures on his phone with such delight. It was hard to believe that this was the same angry teen that had snapped at his brother just moments ago.

"Thanks for walking me out Yasuchika-chan." He pulled his eyes away from his phone, realizing I was still there while he was gushing over the tigers.

"Don't tell Mitsukuni-nii." Yasuchika said quickly as he composed himself.

"My lips are sealed." _Besides, I'm still terrified of you. _

* * *

I walked down the hall away from where the physicals for my class took place, lost in thought, thinking about my visit with Ojiisan yesterday. He was having a good day yesterday. We spend the night looking over old photo albums as he told me stories of each person. If you didn't know it, you wouldn't believe anything was wrong with this mind, he was so bright and lively. Every thing was starting to look up.

"Agh!" My foot slipped out from under me, causing me to stumble forward before I just barely managed to catch myself. On the floor lay what looked to be a hand puppet in the shape of a cat. I picked up the piece of cloth and brushed it off. "I'm sorry for stepping on you, Beelzenef. I didn't see you there."

"You found Beelzenef." I let out a small yell whipping around to see a figure peering around the corner cloaked in a large black robe that succeeded in covering all but the bottom half of his face. The person was grinning at me, which made my face heat up even more. _He must think I'm an idiot. _Not only had I yelled out of surprise yet again but I was caught talking to a puppet.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Nekozawa-san. I didn't mean to step on him; I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. I tried to clean him off for you." The words were coming out as fast as my heart was beating. I held the limp puppet out to him, as I got closer. He took the puppet and slipped it on his hand, making the cat wiggle around a bit.

"It's okay Kusumoto-san." He grinned. "I see my curse on Matsuura worked."

"You knew?" I asked after a beat. He nodded.

"You see a lot in the shadows. The black magic club helped me perform a curse on her." I didn't have it in my heart to tell him that it was actually Kyoya that had made her disappear. He was so happy that his curse had worked, and who knows, maybe it did.

"Thank you for your help, Nekozawa-san. Please thank your club members for me as well." I bowed in thanks. "I'm sorry about leaving you alone in class last week as well. If there is anything I can do to make it up you, please let me know." His grin grew.

"Actually, Kusumoto-san, you could help. What do you know about Lotería cards?"

* * *

"This is the room Kyoya said they'd be in." I said out loud to myself double checking the note vs. the number on the door. I had rushed over to the East wing, just like I promised Tamaki I would, after chatting with Nekozawa for a while. I opened the door to see the boys surrounding a disheveled looking man in a doctor's coat. Haruhi was finishing buttoning up her school shirt while Tamaki was shirtless for some reason. _Though that explains why he made me help him apply those temporary tattoos last night…kind of. _

_ "_Mi-chan! You came!" Honey bounded over, hugging me around the waist. "I grew 2cm, Mi-chan~!"

"That's excellent Honey-kun. What exactly did I miss?" I asked taking in the strange scene that was happening around us.

"We protected Haru-chan from the perverted doctor who was looking for his daughter at the wrong school!" _That somehow explained everything and nothing at the same time. _

**"We've got the real pervert here!" **The twins declared as they finished tying up Tamaki.

"Mami help me." Tamaki cried, trying to wiggle out of the ropes. I went to step forward when a hand on my shoulder stopped me. Kyoya looked down at me with an evil look in his eye.

"Not yet. Let him suffer a bit more." Tamaki must have really messed up this time.

* * *

**Author's note**

**Thank you all for the kind reviews and all of the favorite/follows. When I first started this story I never thought so many people would like to read it, let alone make it one of their favorites. I'm so thankful for all of you for supporting me. **

**I'm having a bit of writer's block with the next chapter. I know what I want to do but nothing really seems right, mostly because I have a hard time writing the twins. That being said, if anyone has anything they want to see happen, please let me know. I'm always looking for inspiration. **

**I also really wanted Mami to meet Yasuchika and I couldn't wait any longer. I like to think that even though he tries so hard to hide his love of baby animals to everyone that he would unintentionally let his guard down around Mami because she's super non-threatening (I mean she's still terrified of him). Eventually, I like to think that she is a huge help in setting up the Animal Breeding Club that Satoshi and him start later on in the manga. **

**I hope you continue to enjoy the story!**


	10. Chapter 10

_Mami's inner thoughts _

**Multiple people talking at once**

**I do not own anything but my own characters. **

* * *

"Mami! Are you going to the host club today?" Tamaki raced up to me after the last bell. I quit questioning why any member of the host club would be in Class B wing a long time ago. They didn't make it a point to walk with me between classes anymore now that the threat was gone. It just didn't stop them from showing up any less. I sighed.

"I don't have a choice do I?" It was the end of the week and I had finally caught up on my work that I had missed, so I didn't have an excuse to skip the club again. A couple of girls walked past us giggling at their phone.

"Haruhi-kun is really hot in that picture."

"Mami. What are they talking about?" Tamaki whipped his head around to me, panic clear in his eyes. I pulled out my phone, thinking clearer than my counterpart, and pulled up the host club website.

"Calm down, Tamaki. I'm sure it's noth-" On the homepage was a pretty clearly photo shopped picture of Haruhi. Someone had placed her head on top of a shirtless body; it was honestly disorienting to look at. The proportions were all wrong.

"What? What is it?" Tamaki grabbed my phone from my hands and nearly dropped it. "THOSE LITTLE DEVILS!" The blonde took off toward the third music room faster than I thought possible.

"Tamaki! Wait, my phone!" I jogged after him as fast as I could in dress shoes and a dress. It wasn't until I was already panting in front of the third music room that I realized I could have just gotten my phone back from Tamaki tonight at dinner. _I might as well make the running worth it. _

"Nekozawa-san?" I was surprised to my friend crumpled on the floor. His face was pale and he looked sickly. I adjusted the hood slightly for him so that it covered his face more. "Why are you on the floor?"

"Those murders." He mumbled out. I only had to look over at Tamaki lecturing the bored looking twins about the dangers of Nekozawa's curses, to put two and two together. I helped Nekozawa back over to the door that lead to the Black Magic clubroom, where the members helped their president back into the safety of the dark.

"You should probably tell, Mami-senpai to be careful then, Tono." Hikaru pointed over toward me.

"Mami! Don't get too close or he'll curse you too!" The blonde pulled me away from the now closed door.

"You do realize they're in the same class." Kyoya said simply as Haruhi looked on with a look that screamed that she would rather be anywhere else. Tamaki whipped his head around to stare at me with disbelief.

"He's my partner in English class too. He's very nice if you give him a chance, Tamaki" Arms snaked around my body in a familiar fashion. The twins enjoyed making me blush and they knew that invading my personal space was the quickest way to do so. I wouldn't be surprised if they were holding a competition between themselves on who could get me to turn the darkest shade.

"Could it be?" Hikaru said from my right.

"Does Auntie have a crush on the dark prince?" My face instantly felt like it was on fire. _One point to Kaoru. _

"W-what are you talking about? Nekozawa-san is just a friend." They clucked their tongues in disbelief. I untangled myself from their arms, quickly making my way behind Haruhi. She could handle the tricksters better than I could. The freshman just simply sighed at my use of her as a human shield. Luckily, Tamaki 'grounded' the twins before the club started, forbidding them from having any costumers or talking to anyone.

I happily joined Honey and Mori at their table after confirming with Kyoya that I wouldn't be interfering with any reservations. Their table was my favorite spot. It was situated in the corner of the room, so I didn't feel as exposed like I did earlier. Plus I liked the girls that visited my fellow seniors. They were all very nice and quiet letting Honey takes the lead with most conversations. Mori silently placed a slice of Black Forrest cake in front of me.

A sudden loud voice made me yelp in surprise. _I really hate sudden loud noises._ Hikaru and Kaoru were going head to head, shouting insults at each other. I followed the rest of the hosts, who had gathered at a safe distance to watch what was happening. The twins were slowly getting louder with each insult they were throwing at each other.

"**SEVER ALL TIES!"** I flinched back, uncomfortable with all the yelling, into something hard. A warm hand rested on my shoulder, I followed it up to find grey eyes staring back at me. Mori looked concerned, almost as if he was silently asking if I was okay. I nodded, forcing myself to look away from his intense gaze, my stomach beginning to twist in embarrassment. _Why did I have to be so jumpy? _The twins left the clubroom, refusing to look at one another, leaving the rest of us dumbfounded. A heavy feeling washed over me. Honey glanced up at me with sad eyes before it shifted into a sly smile.

"Are you okay, Mi-chan?"

"Yeah, I'm just worried about Hikaru and Kaoru. They said some pretty mean things to each other. I hope they'll be okay." Honey giggled slightly before shaking his head.

"I'm sure they'll make up tonight and everything will be back to normal tomorrow." He smiled sweetly calming my nerves. "Takashi we should go too." The taller boy hummed in agreement before following the bouncing blonde toward the door. My shoulder felt oddly empty as I watched them leave.

* * *

I placed my empty bento back into my bag as Haruhi rounded the corner. I didn't think she was going to join me today. Since the Chiharu-incident was solved, I was able to convince Honey to let me get lunch outside again. Occasionally, they would join me but Haruhi was the one that joined me the most often. She liked the quiet of the outdoors and she, like me, always brought lunch. I saw her getting dragged along by the twins, who had dyed their hair ridiculous colors over night, on my way outside. She looked even more annoyed that usual today. _I guess I made the right choice in avoiding the cafeteria today. _She sat down with a huff.

"What happened, Haruhi?"

"The twins started a food fight in the cafeteria and blamed Tamaki for the vice principal spilling his soup so now we have to clean the cafeteria after class." Her frown deepened. "I didn't get to try foie gras"

"They're still fighting?" I frowned as Haruhi nodded taking a bite out of her egg. "Do you know what started it?" She looked down.

"I think it's because I said that Hikaru was 10% more evil than Kaoru." I couldn't help but laugh.

"But it's true!" I stopped laughing and looked at her in all seriousness. "Don't tell them I agreed with you or they'll drag me into it too." The younger girl simply rolled her eyes, not taking my very real fears seriously.

"I do hope they make up soon. I hate seeing them like this." I frowned. I feared what would happen if the twins didn't make up with one another. If I was this upset of over the possibility of loosing the friends I had just made, I could only imagine how horrible it would be to lose your best friend since before birth.

* * *

"I don't see why I had to help clean too. I wasn't even in the cafeteria when it happened." I muttered under my breath as I fell into one of the plush chairs in the clubroom. I didn't mind cleaning; I cleaned the animal cages both at home and at the center on a regular basis, that didn't bother me. What did bother me was getting pulled into punishment for something I wasn't the cause of.

"You are a part of the host club." Kyoya replied already pulling out his notebook. He had been quick to pick up the feather duster when we first arrived. He had just lazily brushed it over the already spotless surfaces, leaving the heavy cleaning to the rest of us. "And we did have to reschedule a lot of appointments due to you taking time off to catch up on school work. It's the least you could do for all the extra work you made."

His icy stare made me push myself back into my chair, willing it to swallow me whole. Kyoya had been patient with me but with the stress caused by the twins' rift, it was wearing thin. Kyoya looked over his notebook and sighed.

"If this situation persists, we will have to cancel the brotherly love setting…" I felt my stomach drop as the word cancel echoed in my ears. My mind started spiraling. If the brotherly love package got canceled, how long would the host club last? Could the club survive without the twins? Would the host club come to an end? Could I be close to losing the only friends I've ever had?

"Haru-chan?" Honey's voice broke through my inner turmoil. He looked curiously at the retreating back of the freshman. Kyoya sighed and slowly pushed his chair back from the table. I tried to dry my sweaty hands on the skirt of my dress while focusing on calming my heartbeat.

"I suppose we should follow as well, before they kill Tamaki." Mori, Honey and I followed the shadow king out to the open field, arriving just in time for Kaoru to pull out a cursed Beelzenef doll. Before anything else could be said, Haruhi hit the twins hard upside the head.

"Stop that! Don't use that kind of thing for such a stupid quarrel! Both of you are bad and you're causing trouble for people around you." This was the first time I've seen Haruhi so upset. "If you two don't make up and shake hands now, you two will never ever set foot in my house in this lifetime." The whole mood changed. The tension that was surrounding the boys suddenly disappeared as the twins looked up with matching smirks showing off a script and a blank Beelzenef doll.

I can't believe it. They were faking the whole time. I nearly had an anxiety attack because of them. I couldn't help the feeling of betrayal that floated to the surface as the little voice in the back of my head started to slowly get louder. An arm landed on my shoulder.

"Where you really that worried, Mami-senpai?" Hikaru asked, the playful smirk still on his face. I pushed his arm off. I couldn't look at them right now. I had reached my limit and I was afraid if I looked at them, I wouldn't be able to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.

"I-i have to go." I ignored the sounds of protest as I walked away from the group toward the front of the school.

"Tsk, someone can't take a joke." Hikaru said to my back. I was hurt that they could so easily play with our emotions like that. If they were faking the fight, what's the say they weren't faking our friendship as well?

_ They were never your friends. They just felt sorry for you. You don't have any friends. _

The little voice of doubt in the back of my mind didn't seem so small in the moment.

* * *

"Mami, are you okay?" Tamaki's voice startled me a bit, causing my fork to clatter down on the plate in front of me.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"You haven't touched your food." Tamaki pointed out. I glanced down at my plate, realizing he was right. It was untouched except for a few peas I had been pushing around. He reached over and grabbed my hand.

"Mami, please tell me what's bothering you." He was clearly worried. "You don't have to keep everything to yourself anymore." I could feel my stomach beginning to twist even more than it was previously as guilt began to wash over me. Deep down, I knew the little voice was lying to me but I couldn't stop myself from listening to it.

"Tamaki…you're my friend because you want to be friends with me and not just because you feel bad for me?" I somehow managed to choke out after a few minutes of tense silence as I battled with myself. He squeezed the hand he held in his, making me finally look at him in the face.

"Of course I'm your friend, Mami." Everything about Tamaki screamed sincere in that moment as I felt a heavy weight beginning to be lifted off my chest. "What's this about?"

"When we found out that the twins were faking their fight, I convinced myself that everything had been a lie, that you guys were only pretending to be my friend because you've all just felt bad for me. I know deep down that it's not true at all but I can't stop myself from believing it. I can't stop my brain from going into overdrive and believing the worst. I'm so scared I'm going to mess up everything and loose the only friends I've ever had."

Tamaki didn't say anything for a while. He seemed to be trying to make sense my weird thought process. I couldn't blame him for taking so long to process, I didn't fully understand it myself.

"I can promise you, with the upmost certainty, that I'm not going anywhere. The Host club isn't going to go anywhere and even if it did, we would still be friends."

"I-I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Thank you for telling me, Mami." He smiled. I returned it as the voice of doubt finally quieted down. I happily dug into my dinner as we chatted about different ideas for the host club. My anxiety finally quieting down enough for me to enough dinner with my best friend.

* * *

"Mami-senpai!"

"It's time to play-"

**"Which one is Hikaru game?" **The two of them spun out in front of me, wrapping an arm around each other's shoulders. Their hair was still dyed the ridiculous colors they had been sporting during the fake fight. They had been playing the game all day with the guests but I was too focused on the animals to pay much attention to them.

"Do I have to play?" I asked as I gently placed the veiled chameleon, I had been showing Kyoya's guests just moments before, back in it's cage. They looked at each and had a brief silently conversation before turning back to me.

**"Yes."**

"If I guess right, are you going to start another fake fight?" Once again they shared a look before turning back to me.

"We promise not to start a fight."

"If you guess correctly." I stared at them looking for the very subtle differences I had picked up between the two over the last couple of months. They were obviously trying to trick the guests today, as they had swapped hair colors but they couldn't change the fact that Kaoru had a very faint scar on his hairline, or that Hikaru's smile always went slightly to the left.

"You're Hikaru." I pointed to the twin with powder blue hair.

**"Wrong!"**

"Why do you have pink hair, Kaoru?" I couldn't help but smile as Haruhi walked up and confirmed that I was correct. The twins stared just continued to stare at us.

"Haruhi-kun, do you mind helping me bring this over?" I asked after it became clear that the twins weren't going to say anything.

"Sure." Carefully, the two of us lifted the fairly large cage and brought it closer to the door, leaving the stunned boys behind us.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**As always, thank you so much for all of the follows, favorites and reviews. It makes me so happy and motivated every time I get a notification. I honestly had a really hard time with this chapter, so I'm sorry if it's not the best. I probably changed the ending about 6 different times, trying to create the right conversation for Mami to have about her anxiety. Orginally, I was going to have Kaoru talk to her about it and then I tried briefly for Yasuchika to show up again (Mostly I just wanted to write more interactions with him and Mami) but eventually it only felt right for Tamaki to be the one to drag it out of her. I feel like Mami is closest to Tamaki and thus more willing to open up to him. **

**I completely made up the slight physical differences with the twins. I just liked the idea of Mami using her keen observation skills to be able to catch the very, very slight differences in the twins. **

**I hope you continue to enjoy the story! Please review and I'll see you next time! **


	11. Chapter 11

_Mami's inner thoughts _

**People talking in unison.**

**I own nothing but my own characters.**

* * *

"I can't believe Kyoya would give us the day off!" I walked with a slight bounce in my step next to Haruhi. I glanced down at my younger friend. "I wonder if it's a reward because Shiro-kun was able to bring in all those extra customers."

The little elementary student had cause quiet a scene last week at the host club. Tamaki, being the bleeding heart he is, couldn't refuse to help him once he found out the young boy wanted to impress his classmate. I didn't like Shiro, he was too rough with the animals I had been showing the day he had burst into the clubroom and he was rude to my friends. I took full advantage of my contract with the host club that week and only came when I was showing the animals just to avoid being around him.

"Maybe?" Haruhi said with a shrug. "I'm just happy that I'll have time to do laundry now." Suddenly, the twin sped out from either side of us and grabbed Haruhi by the arms.

"Abduction-  
"Complete!"

Just as quickly, a limo pulled up and Tamaki rolled down the window, he was still in his school uniform but he was now wearing sunglasses and lei of red hibiscuses around his neck.

"Alright, take her in."

"**Roger!" **Tamaki threw open the door as the twins forced Haruhi into the car while she protested loudly. I stood fixated in the same spot, just watching the strange scene happen. The blonde turned toward me with a smile.

"Get in Mami! We're having family bonding time!"

"I don't have a choice do I?" As if to answer my question, the twin's faces appeared in the doorframe with matching shit-eating grins. There was no doubt in my mind that they would have no problem forcing me into the limo like they had Haruhi. I climbed in willingly, taking a seat next to Tamaki. Haruhi sat in between the twins, with a dazed look on her face. It was almost like her brain had shut down, trying to process what exactly was going on.

"So, where exactly are we going?" I asked the boys as the driver began to leave the school grounds.

"Kyoya's family is about to open an indoor water park and we got invited to try it out." Tamaki said excitedly as he ignored the catatonic state that Haruhi was currently in. Eventually the limo stopped in front of a huge dome shaped building. Tamaki and I walked behind the twins, as they once again grabbed Haruhi and dragged her into the building.

The inside was incredible. It felt just like the tropics, palm trees were swaying in the artificial breeze, I could see and hear several tropical birds flying around as we made our way to the changing room.

_I have to ask Kyoya about the animals here and make sure they have the proper care. _

The underclassmen eventually stopped in front of the changing room, where two identical maids were waiting. The girls grabbed poor Haruhi and forced her into the changing room with them. I looked out at the several different pools and water slides in the distance with a slight pout.

"I wish you had told me sooner that we were going swimming, I would have brought a swim suit."

"Actually, Mami-senpai-"

"We designed a suit just for you." The twins wrapped their arms around my shoulders. I looked up at Kaoru.

"You didn't have to go through all that trouble. I have swim suits at home."

"**We know."** They said in unison as they came out to stand in front of me and gave a slight bow. "**We're sorry for upsetting you with our fight." ** I could tell that they weren't entirely too happy about apologizing, especially Hikaru. He kept glaring at Tamaki, who was attempting to hide behind a large leaf a short distance away. It was obvious that he was forcing them to do this. I couldn't help the small smile that crept onto my face.

"It's okay, really."

"No, we upset you and made you worry. Friends shouldn't do that to other friends." Kaoru spoke up, now rubbing the back of his neck. "Consider the bathing suit as an apology gift. It's a Hitachiin original."

"Thank you." I gave both of them a quick hug before making my way into the changing room where Haruhi was fighting off the maids. They were trying to force her into a swimsuit that was nothing more than strings. One of them noticed me with a glint in her eye as she rushed over, grabbing my arm.

"Ah! Kusumoto-sama! Right over here, this one was picked out specifically for you." I gave Haruhi a fearful look as the other maid pulled out another provocative suit seemingly out of nowhere. Inside of the changing room I was pushed into was a single bathing suit. I was surprised at how much I liked it. It was way more conservative that the ones I saw being shoved in Haruhi's face. The top was yellow with thin straps that tied behind by neck; it came down to a subtle v and had a bit of fringe that flared out right under my breasts. The bottoms were white, high waisted and decorated with flying toucans. As I walked out of the changing room, I could hear Haruhi still fighting with the maids.

"Umm, Haruhi-chan? Are you okay?" I heard her grunt before she stuck her head out of the changing room. She had a pink swim cap that wasn't sitting quite right on her head.

"Yeah, I'm okay. We're almost done, so I'll catch up with you." Her nearly deadpan expression changed briefly to one of shock as she was yanked back into the room. I paused briefly before deciding against trying to help my younger friend out. She was probably handling them better than I ever could anyways. Once outside, I made me way toward where I could hear the boys, only stopping once my feet sunk into the ground.

"Sand?"

"My family tried to make this place as authentic as possible."  
"Argh!" I stumbled away from Kyoya who had suddenly appeared by my side. I placed a hand over my chest, in a weak attempt to will my heart to stop trying to jump out of my chest. The light glinted off of his glasses as he pushed them further up his nose, with a small-amused grin on his face. "Don't do that, Kyoya-san."

"I apologize for startling you, Mami-san. I thought you might be interested in the snorkeling pool. We have quite the collection of tropical fish for you to swim with."

"Really? I would love to see that. Actually, I want to talk to you-"

"Mi-Chan~!" I was nearly knocked over from the sudden weight on my back. Honey's arms wrapped around my neck as he peaked over my shoulder, "Come swim with me!" He slid down my back and pulled me by my hand toward the pool where Mori was currently standing. I glanced over my shoulder at Kyoya, who coolly took a sip of his drink.

"We can continue our chat later, Mami-san." With a sigh, I stopped my weak attempt at resisting Honey and that's when I got a good look at him. He was wearing an inner tube with a bunny pattern around his waist.

"You look cute in that, Honey-kun." He looked up at me and grinned.

"Don't I? You look really cute too, Mi-chan!" He stopped just as we got to the edge of the pool where Mori was waiting. "Lets jump in together!"

"W-wait, Hon-" Still grasping my hand, he jumped in, pulling me along with ease. I had just enough time to hold my breath before hitting the water. I caught my feet underneath me and stood up, shaking my hair out of my face in the process. The water where we were at came up to mid chest. Mori had made his way over as Honey spun around in his inner tube, giggling gleefully.

"A little warning next time would be nice, Honey-kun." I shook my head to the side in an attempt to knock the water out of my ear.

"But the best way to get into a pool is to jump in! Ne, Takashi?"

"Ah."

"Look! There's Haru-chan! I'm going to go ask if she wants to swim with us too!" Despite the fact that he couldn't touch the bottom of the pool where were at, he jumped out of the pool with ease. Honey raced over toward Haruhi, who was wearing a yellow hoodie. I placed my hands on the edge of the pool, attempted and failed to jump out myself.

_How the heck did Honey do this so easily? _I let out a small squeal as strong hands were placed on my hips. Without much effort, Mori lifted me up out of the water and sat me down on the edge. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as the rush of embarrassment of being unable to get myself out of the pool washed over me.

"T-thanks." I managed to squeak out before scrambling to my feet. He watched on silently with a slightly amused look on his face before he easily lifted himself out of the pool.

"Look." He pointed toward the sky. A brilliantly colored bird with a long tail soared overhead.

"A quetzal! You can tell that's a male because of the long tail feathers, the females don't have those. They were a symbol of wealth in Aztec and Maya society and it's the national symbol for Guatemala." I turned back toward Mori as the bird disappeared out of sight, to find him staring at me. "A-ah, sorry. I was rambling wasn't I?" He smiled slightly and opened his mouth to say something.

"Takashi! Lets go in the current pool!" Honey jumped on Mori's back and pointed toward one of the pools where the water was visibly moving. Mori stared at me for a second before nodding. "Mi-chan, do you want to join us?"

"I think I'm going to go find the snorkeling pool Kyoya-san was telling me about. I'll join you later though."

I found the pool fairly easily thanks to the small stand that was out in front of it with snorkels. The kind woman behind the counter walked me through how to place the mask on my face without it fogging up and showed me how to properly breath through the snorkel before guiding me around the back to rinse off. I dipped my feet into the pool as I settled the mask on my face. The water was cooler than the other pool but still pleasant. This pool had a small ledge before it dropped off into a large open space. In the center was a fake wreaked ship that the fish were swimming in and out of; there was also some fake coral and other sea decorations to go along with the theme.

I lowered myself onto the ledge before slowly pushing off it to float among the fish. I tried my hardest to fight the instinct to kick my feet, using just my hands, to push me around like the woman had told me. All around were magnificently colored fish that swam around slowly, generally ignoring my presence. Toward the bottom of the tank I saw some nursing sharks lazily swimming around. I slowly followed them, happy to have a chance to study them up close. I loved marine life and it wasn't often that I got to study these beautiful animals up close. Suddenly, they and the rest of the fish darted away and soon there was nothing left to see. I let my feet drop behind me as I lifted my head up just in time to see a large wave come crashing down.

* * *

I felt like my lungs were on fire as I coughed up water. The wave had lifted me clear out of the pool and tossed me around a bit before it slowed. I looked around at where the massive wave had left me, trying to gain my sense of direction again. All around me were tall palm trees and there was nothing familiar in sight. My fingers twitched nervously. This place was huge and I had no idea where I was or where my friends were.

"Mi-chan? Is that you?" I could hear some leaves shuffling as Honey made his way into the clearing. "You're hurt!"

"Huh?" I looked down and sure enough there was a fairly large cut on my knee and blood was slowly dripping down my leg. The adrenaline from the wave hid the pain at first but now that I was staring at it, I could feel the cut beginning to throb. "I-I'm okay, I just need to think for a second."

I took a couple of deep breaths and tried to remember what Ojiisan had taught me about first aid. _First: stop the bleeding. _I grabbed the fringe edge of my top at the seem and yanked it quickly to the side, successfully ripping the extra piece of cloth off. I bundled it up and held it against the wound. _Apply pressure. _

"Here, Mi-chan." Honey kneeled down next to me and wrapped a bit of vine that he had ripped from a nearby tree around my knee as I held the cloth in place. He rocked back on his heels once he was done and stared at my blood stained leg.

"It looks worse than it is. Besides, it not like we're lost in a real jungle. We'll get help soon enough."

"You're right! Let's go find the others!" He pumped a first and helped me stand back up. It was difficult to bend my leg with the vine wrapped around it. "Which way do you think we should go first?"

"Well, we came in from the south." I glanced up toward the glass dome overhead and caught a glimpse of the sun. "We should go that way."

"Lets go, Mi-chan!" Honey bounced in the direction where I pointed, singing a cheerful song. He would frequently interrupt himself to ask me a question or to point out a cool plant or animal along the way. His over the top cheerfulness made me feel better as I watched him skip ahead. If I had to be lost in the fake jungle with anyone, Honey would definitely be my first pick. My smile quickly dropped as I grabbed him by the upper arm, stopping him in his tracks.

"Watch out!" Just in front of him was a fairly large pond, which he had almost skipped into, that had some familiar fish swimming around. The silvery-orange and black fish swam a bit closer to the edge; there was no mistaking them. My anxiety from the lost necklace was briefly pushed to the side as anger welled up. "I'm going to kill Kyoya! Who puts a pond of piranhas in a relaxation resort without any sort of safety measures?"

As soon as I said that, the sky opened up and started to pour. It was Honey's turn to pull me away toward some large leaves for shelter.

"Kyo-chan's family really does think of everything, huh?" Honey said as we waited for the squall to pass. As I watched the rainfall in sheets around us, my anger and anxiety began to ebb away with each raindrop that dripped down off the leaf in front of us.

"You know, I'm really glad you joined host club." Honey spoke up suddenly. I glanced over at him. He was staring out at the rain with a serious look on his face.

"I'm glad I did too, Honey-kun."

"Have you noticed that you talk to people more, even outside of the club?"

"I…I didn't, but I guess you're right." He looked up at me with a smile.

"I'm glad you're opening up more, Mi-chan." Honey was right. Since joining the host club, I had changed. If you had told me even half a year ago that I would be wandering around a fake jungle in nothing but a bathing suit in search of my friends and not having a panic attack, I never would have believed it. I was a bit more comfortable around people now as well, I even started conversations when in a small group. True, a lot of things still made me anxious but not at all like they used to. Being around my friends made me feel comfortable and safe.

"Me too."

We shared a smile before he suddenly looked to the right. He jumped up, pulling me along, and ran deeper into the woods, with me limping behind him, before he stopped in a small clearing. I looked down at him, noticing that his whole aura had changed. His body was tense and his face showed his true age as clear as day. Through a clearing in the leaves we had a perfect view of what was causing this sudden change. Mori was holding Haruhi protectively in his arms as men in tactical gear and guns surrounded them. They were shouting at Mori and pointing the guns at them. Honey looked up at me quickly.

"Mami, stay here until it's safe, okay?" The fact that he didn't use my nickname was enough for me to agree. I watched nervously as he quickly scaled a tree, grabbed a nearby vine and leapt out toward our friends. I had seen Honey spar with his brother before, but watching him easily take out six men easily twice his size was something else. I hadn't realized I was frozen in place until he called out for me, snapping me out of my amazement.

"Mi-chan! You can come out now." Tamaki almost knocked me over as I made my way into the clearing, stepping over one of the passed out men.

"Mami! I was so worried! I was afraid you were going to get eaten by a crocodile. What happened to your leg?" He rambled on at a million miles a minute.

"I'm okay Tamaki. Wait, did you say crocodile?" I immediately whipped my head around. "Kyoya."

"We'll have a discussion about those minor fixes later, Mami-san. For right now, we should head to first-aid to get your leg cleaned. They're already expecting us." He turned and began to walk toward what I assumed where the entrance was. I grumbled under my breath as I began to follow him, finally free from Tamaki's grasp. I managed to limp forward just a couple of steps before I was suddenly swept off my feet. With one arm under my legs and another under my shoulders, Mori began to walk after the rest of the group.

"Y-You don't have to carry me, I'm okay, Mori-kun." My face felt like it was on fire. I silently hoped that the twins wouldn't turn around, knowing I would never hear the end of it. He looked down.

"You're hurt."

"I can still walk." He shook his head and seemed to pull me closer to his chest. I could almost hear his heart beat I was so close. I stopped resisting and rested my head on his chest as fatigue of what had happened that day began to over come me. I found myself being lulled to sleep as I listened to his steady heartbeat. At first being this close made me nervous but now all I could think about was how comfortable and safe I felt in that moment.

* * *

**Author's note:**

**I appologize for the late update, between the holidays and having to work a bunch of over time to cover for sick coworkers, it was hard to find time to sit down and write. Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I really appreciate the kind words. **

**I like to imagine that Tamaki helped the twins realize that they're actions have consequences, which leads to Kaoru being the bigger person during the date episode, so I tried to set some back story to that. **

**I haven't written the next chapter yet but I have some ideas but I mostly want to get some more interaction with Mori just to build that relationship a bit more. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and thank you all for your patience! **


	12. Chapter 12

**Talking in unison**

_Mami's inner thoughts._

**_I own nothing but my own characters._**

* * *

"What do you think about this wording, Kyoya-san?" The spectacled boy sitting next to me sighed before glancing over toward me, ignoring my notebook I had been trying to give him.

"Mami-san, I thought we agreed that we had finished this."

"I know, I know but I thought of something else. I want to make sure everything gets covered." When he didn't take my notebook, I slowly took it back into my lap, staring down at the pages that were littered with scratched out words and little notes in the sidelines. Kyoya had agreed to let me come up with a list of guidelines for his family's water park to follow regarding the animals, which I think he was beginning to regret after the fifth draft that I given him.

"I assure you that everything has been covered and implemented. Don't forget that you have to interact with the guests too. This is a host club event after all." As if on cue, some girls squealed as Hikaru and Kaoru put on their brotherly act as they played volleyball. Tamaki had surprised everyone by inviting guests along for the impromptu beach trip, though I believe it was actually Kyoya living up to his name of the Shadow king.

"I know." I picked up some sand next to me and let it slowly fall back down. I was using the guidelines as an excused to distract myself from not being able to see Ojiisan for a couple of days. When I had told him about the trip, he had gotten so excited that he had practically put me in the limo himself. I couldn't help the feeling of guilt that had settled in though. His good days were become less and less frequent.

"If you'll excuse me, I have to organize the one-on-one time with Tamaki's guests." Kyoya shut his notebook and rose from his beach chair beside mine. I waved goodbye and watched him make his way over to where a line of girls was already waiting. Tamaki was fidgeting on the rock, probably trying to figure out which position would make him more attractive.

"Mami-senpai?" I turned quickly to see two girls; I tried my best to give them a convincing smile.

"If you're looking for Kyoya-san, he's right over there." The girl in front shook her head.

"No, we were looking for you."

"We were wondering if you could teach us about the animals in the tide pools over there?" The second one said, pointing over toward some rocks.

"R-really?" The both nodded enthusiastically. "S-sure. I can do that." They squealed with delight as I stood up, brushing the sand off my orange sundress the twins had given me for the trip. Together we climb over some of the bigger rocks to get to the small pools of water that were nestled between the rocks.

"I think the animals that live in tidal pools are pretty amazing." I jumped right into presenter mode before my growing anxiety got the better of me. "They had to be able to survive some pretty extreme conditions. Like right now, with low tide, they have to withstand the rising temperature of the water, low oxygen and increased exposure to predators." I squatted down next to a fairly good-sized pool and motioned for me to join me.

"You see the gathering of turban snails there? They retreat into their shells during the low tide to avoid getting dehydrated. And then you get guys like this." I brushed the rough skin of the starfish that was clinging to a rock with two fingers. "During the high tide they use the thousands of suction cups on their limbs to cling to the rocks so they don't get thrown around."

I pointed out more animals as we went along. I was just as excited as they were with each new find. After a while, the girls thanked me and ran off to join in a new game of volleyball that was just starting. I was thankful for the distraction and talking about animals always made me feel closer to Ojiisan.

**"Oi!"** The twins called out, waving me over toward them. They were relaxing in some beach chairs while Tamaki was standing in front of them. From the movements, I could tell he was telling them his grand plan about walking down the beach with Haruhi he as told me last night. As I made my way over to them, I saw Nekozawa walking up behind Tamaki clad in his dark robe with a large black umbrella to shade him from the sunlight. A few weeks ago, Nekozawa had asked me on some tips to become closer friends with Tamaki. I was honestly a little surprised at the request but I tried my best to give him what little advice I could offer. Unfortunately it didn't look like my advice was helping. Tamaki looked terrified as Nekozawa spoke before rushing off shortly after with the twins toward the cat shaped rock in the distance.

"Hello, Nekozawa-san. Beelzebub-kun."

"Hello, Kusumoto-san." He wiggled the puppet on his hand in greeting.

"Thank you for allowing the host club to use your family's beach. It was very kind of you." Together we walked toward where the boys had rushed off too. "I'm sorry my advice doesn't seem to be working."

"Kukuku nonsense, Kusumoto-san." We entered the cave together. Skeletons and battle props decorated the floor. "I tried to create a more artistic atmosphere for everybody's enjoyment."

_Well, I did tell him that Tamaki loves detailed things. _

"I've always wanted to establish a closer friendship with Suoh-san."

"WHY?!" Tamaki cried and ran away from the cave, dragging Haruhi behind him. I placed a hand on my friend's shoulder.

"He'll come around, he just gets scared easily. I'll talk with him and he'll see what a great friend you can be, Nekozawa-san."

"Mi-chan! Come hellfish shunting with us!" Honey waved over to me, showing off a bucket filled to the brim with different crabs and shells. Haruhi was already hurriedly filling up her own bucket.

"Huh?"

"My men wanted to apologize to Honey-senpai about the misunderstanding." Kyoya said as he walked up beside me and pointed over toward some men unloading buckets of sea life onto the beach. _Well at least that explained why there are so many of them. _

"Please tell me they're prepared to clean up the left over? It can be harmful to the environment to introduce so many at a time." Kyoya nodded in understanding and left to go inform his security team.

**"CENTIPEDE!" **A few girls screamed, bringing my attention toward Tamaki who was holding a large crab with a fairly large centipede on it. He looked frozen in fear as Haruhi calmly took the bug and chucked it over the rocks.

"Haruhi!" I shouted.

"It won't die just because of that."

"That's not the point." I sighed, trying to find a glimpse of the bug. "You could have been a little kinder." She shrugged and was soon surrounded by guests who were praising her for being so brave. I felt a sense of relief when I stopped the thrown bug making it way over some rocks.

"Mami-senpai, do you want to join in the 'Who can find out Haruhi's weakness game?'" Kaoru said putting an arm around my shoulder.

"She'd probably just get scared herself." Hikaru chuckled as I frowned.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, come on, Mami-senpai. You get scared of so many things."

"I do not." The twins shared a look before bursting out laughing again.

"You flinch at loud noises"

"And you get nervous talking to people to name a few." Hikaru and Kaoru listed off. I pushed Kaoru's arm off of me before crossing my own arms in front of me.

"That doesn't mean I scared of them. I just don't like unexpected loud noises or talking to people I don't know." Unfortunately it fell on deaf ears as Kyoya pulled some photos of Haruhi out as a prize for the winner. I made myself comfortable on the beach and watched as the boys tried to scare Haruhi. The younger girl was unflappable though and didn't flinch at any of their attempts.

"Mami, do you think these are enough rat snakes to be scary?" Tamaki rushed over carrying a bucket in his hands. The twins were following closely behind, looking bored.

"Tamaki, what are you talking about? Rat snakes aren't native to Okinawa." I peered down inside and I felt my heart beginning to race as I recognized them. "H-habu."

**"Habu?!" **All three of the boys shouted before sprinting away, the twins running to get away from the venomous snakes and Tamaki followed after them, still holding on to the bucket.

"Tamaki! Stop running and slowly put the bucket down!" I called out, getting up from the ground, preparing to run after them, when a guest ran up calling out for Tamaki.

"It's Haruhi-kun!" She pointed toward the cat shaped rock. Two bigger men were holding onto Haruhi, forcing her closer and closer to the edge. The boys didn't hesitate as they raced off in that direction.

I fell to my knees. My heart was racing; I could hear my breath becoming more and more ragged as my vision began to tunnel.

_My friends are in danger. I could lose my friends._

Those words kept repeating loudly in my head as I watched Haruhi getting pushed off the cliff side, Tamaki following soon after, reaching toward her. I felt like my heart was going to stop they landed in the water with a large splash.

"Mami." A deep voice said as I felt someone kneel down beside me. My heart was pounding in my ears so loudly that I was surprised that I could even hear what the person was saying next to me. Mori was next to me, his face was no longer in its usual stoic state. He looked worried and unsure of what to do.

"Excuse me, Morinozuka-san." Nekozawa appeared on the other side of me; surprisingly calm with everything that was happening around him. "May I try something with Kusumoto-san?" Mori looked at me, which I'm sure wasn't a pretty sight. I could feel the tears flowing down my face and I was becoming all too aware of my raged breathing. He nodded at the dark boy. "Kusumoto-san, name five things you can see."

"W-what?"

"Kusumoto-san, five things you can see. Trust me." Nekozawa said beside me. Mori placed his hands on my upper arms, placing himself in front of me, forcing me to focus on him instead of the water where my best friend had disappeared.

"S-sand, the ocean, that scallop shell. a c-crab, and Tamaki!" Nekozawa nodded, grinning as Mori glanced briefly over his shoulder to see Tamaki slowly beginning to walk out of the ocean with Haruhi in his arms.

"Good, now, four things you can touch." Nekozawa continued.

"The warm sand, my soft dress, this smooth rock and Mori-kun." Slowly, I could feel my body become less tense as I continued to focus on the grounding exercise Nekozawa was forcing me to go through. Mori's grip on my arms loosened as he felt me beginning to relax but he didn't let go, which I was grateful for. His touch was comforting.

"Three things you can hear." I closed my eyes and tried to focus on anything but my own ragged breathing and the cries of the girls as Tamaki and Haruhi finally made it back to land.

"The waves crashing on the beach, the seagull crying over head and the wind whistling through the cave."

"Good, almost there. Two things you can smell." I kept my eyes closed. My heart was no longer racing and my breath was almost back to normal. My body felt heavy.

"Sandalwood and citrus." It was a familiar scent. One that made me feel safe and warm and brought back memories of the dance. I opened my eyes quickly, realizing why the scent was so familiar.

"Last one, Kusumoto-san, one thing you can taste."

"Tears?" I tried to say in a joking manner as I licked the saltiness off my lips and tried to whip away the tear stains on my cheeks. Mori smiled and ruffled my hair, his hand lingering just a second on the back on my neck as he looked down at me.

"Feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'm just a little tired. Thank you."

"I'm glad it worked for you, Kusumoto-san." Nekozawa stood back up, grabbing the umbrella he had cast aside. "Though I have a spell that will help as well, I'll go prepare that now." I grabbed his hand as he turned to leave.

"Thank you, Nekozawa-kun." My mind was still racing and I couldn't find the right words I wanted to say to him. He chuckled in his unique way and simply said, "I get them too." Before turning around to head toward the house. Mori stood up beside me and offered a hand. I took it and allowed him to help me up, taking a second to get my feet back under me. Mori stayed close to my side as we walked toward the rest of the host club. As we got closer I could here Tamaki and Haruhi arguing.

"I'm never talking to you again until you realize your mistake." This was the first time I had seen Tamaki so upset. Haruhi just stared at him defiantly, they both looked like they were unharmed from the fall. Tamaki stormed away from the group, glancing back a couple of times to check to see if Haruhi was going to do anything. Eventually he saw me, his face fell as he raced over away from the group. "Mami! Are you okay?"

"Panic attack." Mori said simply, somehow knowing that I was going to try and play it off. Tamaki became almost comically frantic and he paced back and forth mumbling to himself and shouting to Kyoya for help. I grabbed his arm and pulled him into a crushing hug.

"Tamaki, I'm okay now. Mori-kun and Nekozawa-kun helped me." I held on to him tighter as the feeling of the fear I felt just moments before bubbled up to the surface. "I'm so happy you're okay but please don't scare me like that again. I thought I was going to lose you."

"I promise. I'm sorry."

* * *

The tension around the dinner table that night was so thick you could almost cut it with a knife. Haruhi was stabbing at Tamaki's hand as he tried to grab some crab off of her plate. I slowly sipped at my miso soup.

"Mi-chan, do you want some crab?" Honey asked beside me. He held up a fairly huge crab and I could feel my stomach beginning to twist. There was just something about seafood that grossed me out extra hard.

"Oh no thank you, Honey-kun. I'm good with my soup."

"Mami doesn't eat meat, Honey-sempai." Kyoya said snapping a crab leg in half and sucking out the meat. Honey began to apology but I stopped him.

"It's fine, you didn't know and I've got plenty to eat right here. Besides it looks like Haruhi is eating enough for the both of us." The girl now had a sizeable pile of crab shells on her plate as she continued to dig into another one. After some more tense and awkward moments Tamaki announced he was going to bed and left with Kyoya in tow.

"Maybe I really should learn some karate or something." Haruhi said suddenly, looking deep in thought as she stared at the unbroken crab leg in front of her.

**"Oh, so it has been bothering you." **The twins said in unison.

"That's a thought but not really where we were hoping you'd go with this." Kaoru rested his chin on his hand.

"I wish you'd reconsider how rashly you acted today." Hikaru leaned back in his chair a bit.

"Why? I didn't make trouble for you guys, did I?"

"Actually," I leaned forward a bit in my chair. "I had a panic attack." Haruhi's eyes widened as the realization of consequences of her actions started to come to light. "I was so scared and worried that you were going to get hurt or worse and then Tamaki jumped too!" with each word, my speech became faster and faster as I began to relive that moment again, I was snapped out of it by a large, warm hand grabbing one of mine. Mori squeezed my hand, silently reassuring me.

"You should apologize to everyone, Haru-chan. Especially to Tama-chan for making him worry so much, okay?"

"I really made you guys worry that much?" Haruhi sounded slightly surprised before looking down sadly. "I'm sorry I caused you to have a panic attack and I'm sorry for making everyone worry."

**"You're so cute!"** The twins and Honey jumped up to hug her. I wiggled my way in as well, giving the poor girl a hug. The make up session didn't last long before Haruhi turned green and raced frantically toward the door.

"I think she ate too fast." I said as the door slammed shut behind her. The boys nodded in agreement.

* * *

My mind was going a million miles a minute. I kept replaying everything that had happened in my head, making it impossible to sleep. I got tired of lying in my bed and decided to take a walk around the mansion, hoping some light exercise would help. Eventually I found what looked to be a sunroom. Large windows took up almost the entire wall, showing off a beautiful view of the beach below. The waves to crashing into the rocks as the storm outside began to pick up. It didn't look like the room was used very often. There wasn't much furniture, just a small couch with a blanket hanging off the back of it, some barely filled bookshelves and a table with a lamp on it. There was a flash of light that filled the whole room, as lighting stuck out from the dark clouds overhead. At the same time it began to down pour. The rain created a soothing rhythm on the glass.

Taking the blanket that was hanging off the back of the couch, I wrapped myself in it before snuggling into the arm of the couch. I stared out the windows as the storm picked up. I could hear some soft footsteps coming up behind me and then stop. When the person didn't say anything, I had a pretty good idea of who it was. I glanced up and found Mori. He didn't say a word and just stared out the window.

"You couldn't sleep either?" He looked down at me before nodding his head. Another bolt of lighting filled the room with light, followed shortly by a loud clap of thunder. "Do you want to join me?" I sat up a little straighter, allowing him enough room to sit down next to me. The couch was big enough for the both of us but just barely, I was all too aware of his leg that was pressed against mine. We sat in a comfortable silence as the storm continued outside. I pulled the blanket closer to me, seeking the warmth it brought.

"Here." Mori wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to his chest. My heart was pounding as I felt my face heat up.

"I-I'm okay. I have a blanket." I tried to pull away as my stomach began to do flips. He held on tighter to my shoulder, refusing to let me move.

"You're cold." Realizing I was fighting a losing battle, I gave up. I shifted a bit to get into a more comfortable position. Eventually the pounding of my own heart was replaced by the steady beating of his.

"-sleeping?" I slowly opened my eyes, blinking away the sleep, to find a pair of caramel eyes staring back at me. Honey giggled as I scrambled away from Mori who just watched with an amused looked.

"You looked really comfy, Mi-chan."

"W-what are you doing here, Honey-kun?" I asked hoping to change the subject as my ears felt like they were on fire.

"I came to find Takashi and found you here too." Honey grinned. "We're going to go check on Haru-chan and Tama-chan. Kyo-chan said they should have made up by now."

"Oh. Okay, yeah lets do that." I leapt up from the couch and raced toward the door. Kyoya and the twins were waiting in the hallway as I flung the door open.

"I found him and Mi-chan was here too!" Honey cheered from Mori's back. The twins shared a look but were cut off from whatever they were going to say by another crash of thunder.

"Good, lets go check on the idiot then." Kyoya said shortly after and began down the hallway. The twins threw open the door without knocking revealing Tamaki and Haruhi kneeling on the floor as Tamaki finished tying the knot on the blindfold.

"It's not what it looks like!" Tamaki said frantically.

_This is going to take a lot of explaining. _

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**Author's note:**

**Thank you so much for the follows and favorites, it means so much to me that so many people are enjoying this story enough to want to follow it. Please take the time to review if you can, it would mean the world to me. **

**The 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique that Nekozawa used is an actually thing you can do to help someone calm down from an anxiety or panic attack. I've personally used it myself and found it worked out. Clearly I took some liberties with the characters but I like to think that I'm not too far off with Nekozawa having panic attacks. **

**I tried my best to write some fluff for you guys without it seeming too out of character. I really hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you have anything you'd like to see, please let me know! You all are the best! **


	13. Chapter 13

**People talking at the same time**

_Mami's inner thoughts_

**I own nothing except my own characters. **

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I straightened the brightly colored brochures for the tenth time in about five minutes. All around me people were fluttering about enjoying the beginning of the cultural exhibition that Ouran was hosting. Several different school uniforms mixed with the yellow and blue ones of Ouran as bonds and ideas were being exchanged. Kyoya had come to me with the idea to offer the rehabilitation center's services to other clubs and schools. It was hard to argue against it. The partner ship with the Host Club had already brought in more donations in the last few months than what we would typically receive in a year. Kyoya had shown me a spreadsheet of his plan to help expand the program to other clubs and schools, with a small finders fee going straight to the Host club account of course. If everything went according to his plan, this would be a huge opportunity for the center.

What I didn't realize is that he was going to leave all the legwork of gaining new accounts to me. Supposedly, all the hosts were going to be busy with the extra business being brought in from our neighboring schools. Luckily, the animals did most of the attention grabbing; I just had to simply answer any questions. Isca, the rhinoceros hornbill that had taken a liking to Mori that fateful day in the Host Club, loved all the attention and the fresh papaya that came with it. I stumbled horribly over myself with the first few interested clubs but as the day went on, my practiced speech got a little better. It was winding down to the end of the first day and I had already had three clubs that were interested in having an animal demonstration come to their club.

"Look, Benibara-sama!" A girl with a short brown hair pointed excitedly at Isca. Isca shook out his wings, nearly hitting me in the face, ready for another treat. She was the shortest of the three girls that had just walked up. They were all wearing the same maroon and white school uniform. She clasped her hands in front of her chest. "Imagine having live animals in our performances."

"Hmm." The tallest one placed a hand on her chin in thought. Her green eyes studying the brightly colored bird and before shifting over toward where I had a couple of cages set up show casing a couple of giant flying squirrels and a giant skink. "Many of our fans do love animals. It would certainly bring a new dynamic to the stage."

"It could be what we were looking for to bring the Zuka club to the next level, Benibara-sama." The girl with long light hair that fell in gentle waves around her face; smiled up softly at the tall girl. With her hand still on her chin, the one I assumed to be Benibara, nodded her head.

"I think you may be right, Hinagiku-chan, Suzuran-chan."

"Oh, um, I have a brochure here if you're interested." I handed all three of them the brochure. _Make small talk, Mami. Try to keep them interested! _"I'm Kusumoto Mami. My family runs the center so I can help you with any questions you may have." I gave them a shaky smile, hoping they wouldn't notice how nervous I actually was. Benibara took my hand and placed a chaste kiss on the back of it, I could feel my face flush.

"Oh, how rude of us young maiden. I'm Amakusa Benio, but you can call me Benibara. I'm the president of the Zuka Club from St. Lobelia."

"Maihara 'Suzuran' Chizuru. Vice president."

"Tsuwabuki 'Hinagiku' Hinako, proud member of the Zuka club." With a flourish they all bowed. Benibara glanced through the pamphlet I had given her just moments before.

"Do you have any animals with experience of being on the stage?"

"Well, maybe, well, no." I sighed, frustrated with myself for getting flustered. I took a deep breath before continuing again, a little calmer this time. "We mostly just do educational experiences, the animals at the center aren't really trained to be in a performance. The only reason Isca hasn't flown off is because I'm bribing him with papaya." Isca nipped at my ear at the mention of the fruit until I offered up another slice.

"That's too bad." Benibara frowned, disappointed.

"There's always the Girls' Tea Party, Benibara-sama!" Hinako said.

"Imagine how adorable the girls would be holding one of these cuties." Chizuru cooed at one giant flying squirrels.

"We've had a lot of success with the club we're working with now. The club has had an increase of attendance and repeat clients and we do allow our clients to handle some of our more friendly animals." I offered. "Here." I placed Isca on his perch before securing him in his cage. I spoke softly to the squirrel as I lifted one of them out of the cage. I offered him to Chizuru. "Would you like to hold her?" The longhaired girl nodded and cradled the squirrel in her arms before smiling up at Benibara. Benibara's cheeks flushed.

"It does bring out your feminine beauty! Imagine all the smiling faces of those lovely young maidens" She spun around dramatically before slamming a hand on the table. "Sign us up, Mami-chan."

Benibara placed a finger under my chin and brought her face close to mine before asking if I was the one who was going to be showing the animals. Her smirk that had formed on her face as I blushed quickly disappeared as I managed to squeak out a no.

"I'm already contracted to another club but I assure you that all the handlers are well trained." Then to my surprised, they booked a spot for next week right away instead of just waiting to get more information like the other clubs had. They left together, Hinako's mouth was going a million words a minute about how excited she was as Chizuru simply smiled and nodded along. _At least hanging out with Tamaki so much as better prepared me for such dramatics. _

I sent a quick text update to Kyoya, telling him the exciting news of the first customer and the news of the other potential clubs. As I finished, I saw an angry looking Haruhi stalk by. I scramble out from behind the table to catch up to her. She was still mumbling to herself by the time I caught up.

"It was a really nice pencil too."

"Everything okay, Haruhi-kun?" She stopped walking and sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"The boys just got on my nerves." I began to lead her back to my table to I could get cleaned up but still listen to my young friend vent her frustrations.

"What did they do this time?"

"They stole and sold my favorite pencil!" This was probably the most animated I had ever seen her get. "Did you know they took money from the guests?"

"Well, yeah. Did you think I just agreed to give the center's resources away for free? That's not a very good business strategy." Haruhi sighed a bit calmer than she was just moments before.

"They didn't have to steal my pencil though." She grumbled helping me pack away the contents of the table for the next day. As we were folding up the tablecloth together, my phone chimed.

"Sorry, that's probably Kyoya-san." I dropped one corner to grab my phone. I felt all the blood drain from my face.

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**Other P.O.V. **

"We have to come up with a plan!" Tamaki paced back in forth in front of his fellow club members, running a hand through his hair.

"I don't want Haru-chan to leave!" Honey sniffled, wiping some tears away from his face before taking his favorite pink rabbit from his cousin.

"We might have a problem, Tono." Hikaru called out from the window.

"Mami-sempai is talking to the Zuka club." The boys all rushed over to the window. They had a perfect view of all the different tents that were set up in the courtyard showcasing different clubs. It was pretty easy to spot Mami underneath the tent that proudly displayed 'Kusumoto Rehabilitation Center'. Around her were three figures in the distinct uniforms of the Lobelia. Even from this distance they could see the blush that spread across Mami's face as Benibara got closer to her.

"Get your hands off my sister!" Tamaki shouted, trying desperately to get Mami's attention. "Mommy, what if they try to steal Mami away from us?"

"Hmm." Kyoya hummed to himself as he read the message that Mami had just sent him. "It looks as though the Zuka club is going to be a customer of the center as well. Mami just told me they booked a time slot already." Everyone froze and stared at the unofficial mom of the club.

"I don't want Mi-chan to leave us!" Honey cried, tears falling down his face.

"You don't think she'd want to go, right? She looked pretty uncomfortable with them." Kaoru asked as he looked at his brother.

"She's uncomfortable with everyone." Hikaru pointed out, after all that was their favorite game to play with her.

"She has a contract with the Host Club, Tamaki. It's not like they can pay that off like they can with Haruhi's debt." Kyoya pointed out calmly. Tamaki slowly dropped his hands from where they had been tangled into his hair.

"You're right. Mami isn't going anywhere. She wouldn't leave us for a bunch of girls." He said triumphantly as he took as seat on the couch next to the twins.

"That's not what I said at all." Kyoya pointed out but was ignored by Tamaki yet again.

"Let's just focus on keeping Haruhi at Ouran!" At the same time as his declaration, his phone went off. His face dropped as he read the message.

"What's wrong, Tama-chan?" Honey asked pulling at the bottom of Tamaki's blazer.

"Mami canceled dinner."

"So? What's so weird about that?" Hikaru asked with a shrug.

"Wait, why are you and Mami-sempai having dinner together in the first place?" Kaoru leaned over his twin to look at Tamaki but it was Kyoya that answered, not looking up from his laptop.

"Tamaki and Mami-sempai have been eating dinner together every night since she joined the host club."

"What? No fair, I want to have dinner with Mi-chan too!" Honey whined between bites of his cake Mori had gotten for him. The sweets were definitely helping the small senior feel better. Tamaki ignored them and continued to read the messages that Mami was sending. With each ping, his frown deepened.

"Her parents are in town." Kyoya stopped typing to briefly look up at his best friend.

"That may be something to be concerned about."

"What are you talking about Kyo-chan?" Kyoya hurriedly typed on his laptop once more before turning the screen around to face the rest of the hosts.

"It was just announced today that her family was expanding the company to Australia." On the screen was a new article detailing the new deal that the Kusumoto family was hoping to achieve while in Australia. "We can stop her from leaving to a different school but we can't stop her parents from moving her to another country."

"But she just got here, she can't leave." Kaoru said as Hikaru's face morphed into an angry scowl. It was bad enough that they might loose one of their playthings but both of them? Instantly the boys began talking over each other as the panic of loosing both of their female members became all the more real. The sound of a plate breaking broke through the heightened emotions, causing they all to pause.

"Takashi." Honey looked up at his cousin who was staring down a bit confused at the plate that had just fallen from his hands as he tripped over his own feet. The smaller boy stepped carefully around the broken porcelain, trying not to think about the ruined cake, before grabbing Mori's hand. "Don't worry, we'll figure out a way to keep Mi-chan here." Mori looked down at his cousin before nodding.

"Everyone calm down!" Tamaki declared. "I have an idea! Operation: Keep Haruhi and Mami at Ouran is starting now!"

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**Mami P.O.V.**

"Haruhi-chan, you were told to wait too?" I asked as I walked up to the closed music room doors. Last night Tamaki had sent a serious of texts, most of which were just nonsense ramblings of him being worried about his 'daughter' leaving him. One of them though had told her to wait with Haruhi outside of the music room until they were told to come inside. She nodded as a voice rang out.

"Oh Haruhi, we came back just as we promised!" Benibara waved at us as they continued to walk toward us. She bowed deeply, kissing the back of her hand before taking mine and doing the same. "And the beautiful Mami is here as well, what luck." Haruhi's face was passive and looked disinterested while I could feel my face getting warm yet again. "Did you wait for us?"

"I was told not to come in until you guys got here." Haruhi said calmly.

"I see, and Mami-chan, what are you doing here?"

"Ah. Um…well, I'm sort of a part of the club." Benibara frowned a bit before running a hand through her short hair.

"So this club managed to seduce two young maidens." Thankfully, Haruhi saved me from continued embarrassment by finally opening the clubroom doors. It was hard to describe what happened next. Tamaki and Mori were both dress in elegant suits fitting of European royalty while the rest of the boys were dressed in extravagant dresses and wigs. I covered by mouth, trying my hardest to keep the laughter that was bubbling up inside as the twins and Honey ran up to Haruhi insisting that she call them neechan. Finally I couldn't hold it in any longer as Haruhi and I fell on top of one another in fits of laughter.

"T-this was the plan you were talking about?" I managed to get out between fits of uncontrollable laughter. Just as I thought I had it under control, I made eye contact with Kyoya and double over in laughter again. "I can't believe you agreed to this Kyoya!"

"Just what are you doing?" Haruhi said between laughs as well as we attempted to stand up again, holding on to each other.

** "Is that funny?"** The twins and Honey said popping up in front of us causing another fit of laughter to course through us. The boys chased Haruhi around for a bit, her giggles filled the room. I clutched my now aching sides and went to wipe away the tears that had formed but a gentle hand on my chin stopped me.

"Here." Using a small silk handkerchief, Mori brushed away the tears. My heart was pounding in my ears, as I stood frozen, staring into his expressive grey eyes. It may have been my imagination or from the sudden dizziness that I felt as all of my blood rushed to my face but I could have sworn there was a slight pink to his cheeks as his thumb brushed over my cheek. The suddenly slamming of the clubroom door tore my eyes away from his.

"You should have told us you weren't going to leave us Haruhi."

"You made us worry over nothing." The twins had draped their arms around their classmate. Haruhi simply shrugged and didn't offer any apology. I thought it was pretty amazing that they would go to such lengths to try and get her to stay. I didn't think too long on it though as Tamaki launched himself at me. He would have knocked me over if not for Mori placing a hand between my shoulders, keeping me steady.

"I'm sorry Mami. I couldn't come up with a plan to get you to stay. Kyoya said that none of them would work!" Tears were falling down his face as he buried his head into my stomach.

"You can't adopt someone older than you, Tamaki." Somehow, Kyoya had managed to get out of his wig and dress and back into his school uniform without me noticing.

"What are you talking about, Tamaki?"

"We don't want you to leave for Australia, Mi-chan." The sad look in Honey's eyes made my stomach drop.

"Oh, so you heard about that." The boys all nodded while Haruhi looked on completely confused.

"What's going on?"

"Mami is leaving us and replacing me with a kangaroo." Tamaki wailed, gripping me tighter.

"Tamaki…"

"She's going to become best friends with it and forget all about me!"

"Tamaki…"

"Or she's going to get bit by one and die. Everything is venomous there!"

"Tamaki!" The blonde finally stopped and looked up at me. "I'm not moving."

"So you're family isn't expanding to Australia?" Kyoya asked, glancing up from his laptop.

"No, they are. I…um... asked them if I could stay. And they said yes." It was a long and awkward meal brought on by myself. I knew what was happening the moment they texted me saying we were going to have dinner together that night. I didn't make it past the salad course before the anxiety got the better of me and I was sobbing hysterically into my lettuce. Through my sobs I told them that I didn't want to move, I wanted to stay here and finish my last year of high school and stay close to Ojiisan and my friends. This was the first time I had ever told them that I wanted to stay in a place. Before I had Ojiisan to keep me company and it was easy to move from place to place because I never had any friends to leave behind. I was surprised when they agreed right away, ecstatic that I had finally made friends. The main reasoning for them agreeing to let me stay in Japan was Ojiisan. His doctors had told them that the move would be too much and they had agreed to let me stay behind to keep him company even before the dinner had started.

"So you're not moving?" Tamaki lifted his head up and looked up at me with hopeful eyes.

"I'm not moving."

"Yay! Lets celebrate with cake!" Honey cheered as he launched himself at me, knocking Tamaki away in the process. Mori's hand on my back once again kept me from falling over. The twins joined in on the hug as well, stepping on the fallen blonde in the process. From over Kaoru's shoulder I could see that even Kyoya had a small smile on his face_._ "I'm going to get us some cake!" Honey jumped down and dragged the twins away toward the table insisting that he needed help. I couldn't help but smile as I watched all my friends.

"Mami." I could feel my face getting warm again as Mori said my name. I turned around to face him, only to be pulled into his chest. I could feel the muscles through the fancy suit, causing my stomach to twist. _No, this is different from usual. It feels like I ate a bag full of butterflies_. One hand rested on my lower back as the other cradled my head against him. "I'm happy you're staying." I heard him mutter into my hair.

"A-ah."

"Mi-chan~! Takashi! Cake time!" Honey called out and Mori released his hold on me. He gave me one of his rare smiles before going over to join the rest of the hosts.

"C-coming!" I took a couple of deep breaths trying to calm my racing heart. Once I felt the heat beginning to fade from my face, I made my way over to the table now filled with cake. The butterflies came back full force once I realized the only seat left was between Mori and Tamaki. _Focus on something else, Mami! _

"Tamaki, do you honestly think that kangaroos are venomous?"

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**Author's note:**

**Thank you all for the follows, favorites and reviews! And thank you for your patience waiting for this chapter. I'm going to start ramping up the fluff now that Mami is slowly realizing that she likes Mori. Please continue to review with what you think or with anything you'd like to see, I'm open to all ideas! **

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and my plan is to get the next one out faster. **


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